MPs question ministers on net zero and the role of local government

• Watch the session on Parliament TV
• Inquiry: Local government and the path to net zero
• Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee

Scope of the session

The evidence hearing on Monday is likely to cover areas including questions on whether the Government’s upcoming Net Zero Strategy will include a framework setting out the role of local government and how far Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is engaging with local authorities.

The session is also likely to examine the co-ordination across Government on net-zero, funding on schemes such as retrofitting, the Future Homes Standard, and how might net zero be embedded in the planning system.

Witnesses

Monday 20 September 

From 4pm 

• Eddie Hughes MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Rough Sleeping & Housing), Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)
• Lord Callanan, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Business, Energy and Corporate Responsibility), Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (DBEIS)
• Emma Fraser, Director, Housing Markets & Strategy, MHCLG
• Siobhan Jones, Director, Local Government & Communities, MHCLG
• Ffiona Hesketh, Deputy Director for Home Decarbonisation Policy and Strategy, DBEIS

The inquiry

As part of its inquiry, the HCLG Committee has taken evidence on the Government’s plans to make new homes “zero carbon ready” by 2025, through the introduction of new building regulations, planning guidelines and energy efficiency standards; on the role of local government in decarbonising the existing housing stock; and on how else it can contribute to net zero, including through the planning system, by helping to reduce transport emissions and by facilitating the development of smart local energy systems.

Further information

• About Parliament: Select committees
• Visiting Parliament: Watch committees

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