Lead member
Wera Hobhouse
Liberal Democrat, Bath
Commons
Decision
Not called
The amendment was debated as part of a group of amendments, but not put to a vote.
Amendment text
To move the following Clause—
“Energy performance regulations relating to existing premises
(1)
Within six months of the day on which this Act is passed, the Secretary of State must make regulations—
(a)
to amend the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/962) to require that, subject to subsection (2), all tenancies have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of at least Band C by 31 December 2028; and
(b)
to amend the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/595) to raise the cost cap to £10,000.
(2)
Regulations under subsection (1) must provide for exemptions to apply where—
(a)
the occupier of any premises whose permission is needed to carry out works refuses to give such permission;
(b)
it is not technically feasible to improve the energy performance of the premises to the level of EPC Band C; or
(c)
another exemption specified in the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 has been registered in the Private Rented Sector (PRS) Exemptions Register.
(3)
Within six months of the passage of this Act the Secretary of State must make regulations—
(a)
to amend the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 to enable local authorities to give notice to landlords that they wish to inspect a property in relation to those Regulations, requesting permissions from landlords and any tenants in situ at the time to carry out an inspection at an agreed time;
(b)
to expand the scope of the current PRS Exemptions Register and redesign it as a database covering properties’ compliance with or exemptions from EPCs;
(c)
to require a post-improvement EPC to be undertaken to demonstrate compliance;
(d)
to require a valid EPC be in place at all times while a property is let; and
(e)
to raise the maximum total of financial penalties to be imposed by a local authority on a landlord of a domestic private rented sector property in relation to the same breach and for the same property to £30,000 per property and per breach of the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015.
(4)
The Secretary of State may make regulations—
(a)
to enable tenants in the private rented sector to request that energy performance improvements are carried out where a property is in breach of the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015; and
(b)
to make provision for a compensation mechanism where a tenant is paying higher energy bills as a result of a property not meeting the required standard.
(5)
Regulations under this section are subject to the affirmative procedure.”
Member's explanatory statement
This new clause seeks to improve the energy efficiency of private rental properties for tenants and gives powers to local authorities to conduct assessments of the energy efficiency of private rental properties and increase financial penalties for breaches of energy efficiency standards.