Seòmar agus comataidhean

Details are as follows:

External Body	Amount
Local councils	£1,234,8781
Energy companies (through Carbon Emissions Reduction Target)	£1,700,0002
Housing Associations	£0
Scottish Government “loans	£1,000,0003
Scottish Government “ Energy Assistance Package Social Sector for insulation works	£87,000

Notes:

1. Based on returns from local councils. Includes cash estimates of in-kind contributions.

2. Energy suppliers consider the amount of their spending to achieve their obligations under the CERT to be commercially confidential. Based on the assumptions on costs for measures provided by DECC, it is estimated that energy suppliers provided in the region of £1.7 million investment through CERT towards the cost of measures provided under the 2009-10 HIS programme.

3. Scottish Government allocated £1 million for loan funding in HIS areas which is being promoted as part of the HIS offer. This is additional to the HIS 2009-10 budget.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-38535 on 25 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-38532 on 25 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Home Insulation Scheme Area	Successful Bidder
Glasgow/ South Lanarkshire	Solas
Edinburgh	EAGA/ Scottish Power
Stirling	EAGA/ Scottish Power
Fife	EAGA/ Scottish Power
Dundee	Miller Pattison
Angus	Miller Pattison
Highland 1	Miller Pattison
Highland 2	Miller Pattison
Western Isles	Miller Pattison
Orkney	Insta Group

 

The Home Insulation Scheme (HIS) provides intensive promotion of a range of energy efficiency programmes and related support to householders on the door-step in specific areas to assist in tackling climate change and fuel poverty and increase Carbon Emissions Reduction Target investment in Scotland. In addition to insulation measures, HIS ensures that households in targeted areas are also systematically offered:

Energy efficiency advice linked to Home Energy Checks;

Benefits and tariff checks to increase incomes and tackle fuel poverty (through the Energy Assistance Package (EAP))

Heating systems and other measures (through EAP, where households are eligible)

Interest free loans for more expensive energy efficiency measures, for example, in hard to treat properties.

There were 14,416 installations of Home Insulation Scheme insulation measures in the period to 5 December 2010. Reports providing an overview of all Home Insulation Scheme activity, including referrals to other programmes and support are published monthly on the Energy Saving Trust website at http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk.

Participating areas were announced on 6 October 2010. Details are as follows:

Local Authority	Properties	Area
Aberdeen City	8,700	Torry, Nigg and Cove
Aberdeenshire	5,590	Fraserburgh
Argyll and Bute	2,345	Milton and Ardenslate, Dunoon
Dundee	727	Watson Street, Wellgate, Crescent Lane, Hilltown West
East Ayrshire	5,500	Rural West Kilmarnock
East Dunbartonshire	3,000	Within East Dunbartonshire (to be targeted via thermal imaging)
East Lothian	6,100	Musselburgh
East Renfrewshire	1,789	Barrhead, Busby, Clarkston, Giffnock, Neilston, Thornliebank
Edinburgh	5,920	Tollcross
Eilean Siar	10,450	Lewis and Harris
Falkirk	3,000	Stenhousemuir, Larbert and Rural North Falkirk
Fife	24,000	Dunfermline
Glasgow	6,740	Dennistoun and Kelvindale
Highland	12,458	Badenoch & Strathspey, East Sutherland and Edderton and Skye
Inverclyde	2,000	Upper Port Glasgow
Midlothian	506	Pathhead
Moray	260	Forres
North Ayrshire	4,443	Stevenston
North Lanarkshire	564	Salsburgh
Renfrewshire	9,462	Paisley (south)
Orkney	25	Westray, Sanday, Stronsay, Eday, Rousay, Shapinsay, Hoy, Ronaldsay
Perth and Kinross	6,000	Highland Perthshire
Scottish Borders	5,967	Tweedale
South Ayrshire	4,963	Annbank, Coylton, Mossblown, Tarbolton, Dundonald, Loans and Symington
South Lanarkshire	4,240	Various “ based on specific property types
Stirling	2,431	Cultenhove, Cowie, Fallin, Raploch
West Dunbartonshire	2,145	Alexandria
Total	139,325

The number of participating properties is around 6% of the Scottish housing stock.

The £15 million budget for the Home Insulation Scheme was used to support a first phase of activity covering 95,000 houses in 10 local authority areas, together with a second phase of activity covering a further 85,000 houses in additional areas within those 10 local authority districts. Based on information provided by these local authorities, complementary investment of £76,593 was provided by local authorities for publicity and promotion of these schemes. This includes local authorities'' own estimates of the cash value of support that was provided in-kind.

The breakdown is as follows :

(a) 10,581 households had at least one insulation measure installed that was fully paid for under the Home Insulation Scheme (HIS).

(b) 3,020 households had at least one insulation measure installed that was partly paid for under HIS.

These figures are based on delivery as at 5 December 2010, within HIS areas funded from 2009-10 budgets. A household may have had both a partly paid and a fully paid measure installed; if so, the household will be counted in both of the above figures.

This information is not held centrally.

No client contribution is required for loft insulation top-ups provided under the Home Insulation Scheme. In the case of virgin loft and cavity wall insulation, if the tenant of a private landlord is within a priority group under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) scheme then no client contribution is required.

Client contributions are required for virgin loft and cavity wall insulation measures where the household is not in a priority group under CERT. These contributions are collected by installers and while a sample of payments is checked for audit purposes information on the extent of client contributions is not systematically collected from installers by the managing agent.

The anticipation is that private landlords will normally pay any financial contribution towards the cost of insulation measures in cases where such a contribution is required. However, the tenant would be given the option to pay this contribution if the landlord refused to do so.

All private sector households in Home Insulation Scheme (HIS) areas are eligible to receive free loft insulation top-ups. Households will be offered such insulation if their homes require it and are suitable to take this measure.

Eligibility for virgin loft and cavity wall insulation within HIS areas is determined by the UK Government''s Carbon Emissions Reductions Target (CERT) scheme. Under that scheme, households assessed as priority are generally eligible for free virgin loft and cavity wall insulation. Some households in larger properties may be asked to pay a charge for excess meterage. Households are priority under CERT if they are in receipt of certain benefits or over 70 years of age. Other households are assessed as able to pay and therefore eligible for measures at reduced cost. Households will be offered such insulation if their homes require it and are suitable to take this measure.

Based on analysis of activity in HIS areas supported under Scottish Government 2009-10 budgets, approximately 38% of households in those areas would be assessed as priority under CERT criteria, with the remaining 62% regarded as being able to pay. On a pro-rata basis, this would indicate that approximately 70,000 households in HIS areas would be assessed as a priority case under CERT, with the remaining 110,000 households being classed as able to pay for these measures.

These figures should be regarded as a rough estimate only as it is not known whether or not the profile of households that engaged and is reflected in this analysis is fully representative of the household profile in the area as a whole.