Heat in Buildings Bill consultation - tell us what you think: easy read

The Heat in Buildings Standard

Standards mean a level everyone must reach.

The Heat in Buildings Bill will make a new standard for all buildings about heat and energy efficiency.

The Heat in Buildings Bill and a new Heat in Buildings Standard will:

• stop the use of polluting heating from 2045 in all buildings

This means changing gas and oil boilers in buildings.

• make sure homes where the owner lives there meet a minimum energy efficiency standard by the end of 2033

A minimum energy efficiency standard is a rule to make sure buildings reach at least a certain level of using less energy but are still warm and easy to heat.

• make sure landlords meet a minimum energy efficiency standard by the end of 2028

A landlord is a person who rents a property to a person called a tenant.

The ban on polluting heating will only apply to the main heating system of a property.

• We plan to give extra time to meet the clean heat requirement of the Heat in Buildings Standard for:
• homes and businesses that are moving from polluting heating, but have no clean heating systems available
• buildings where a group of people have to share the cost of the work - for example in flats and tenements
• buildings that are harder to change, like historic buildings
• buildings that use bioenergy if there is no way to use clean heating

Bioenergy is energy made from wood pellets or plant waste.

Setting the minimum energy efficiency standard

The new energy efficiency part of the standard could be met by installing these things into homes or buildings:

• loft insulation
• cavity wall insulation
• draught-proofing
• heating controls
• 80 mm hot water cylinder insulation
• suspended floor insulation

Install means to put in.

Insulation is a thick material that is put on, under or around something to stop heat escaping.

Homes where the owner lives there and has stopped using polluting heating by 2033 will not have to meet the minimum energy efficiency standard.

Private rented properties would have to meet the minimum energy efficiency standard even if a clean heating system had been put in.

We are not planning to:

• apply the Heat in Buildings Standard to housing rented from a council or housing association
• set a minimum energy efficiency standard for businesses

Questions on the Heat in Buildings Standard

1. Do you support our plan to stop the use of polluting heating in all buildings after 2045?

I support it a lot

I support it

? I do not know

I do not support it

I strongly do not support it

Tell us more about your answer. Type it here:

2. Should private sector landlords have to meet a minimum energy efficiency standard by the end of 2028 even if they already use clean heating?

Yes I support this a lot

Yes I support this

? I do not know

No I do not support this

No I strongly do not support this

Tell us more about your answer. Type it here:

3. Should we bring in a minimum energy efficiency standard by the end of 2033 in homes where the owner lives there and still has a polluting heating system?

Yes I support this a lot

Yes I support this

? I do not know

I do not support this

I strongly do not support this

Tell us more about your answer. Type it here:

4. Do you think we should have a minimum energy efficiency standard that can be met by installing the things on the list on page 6?

I support this a lot

I support this

? I do not know

I do not support this

I strongly do not support this

Tell us more about your answer. Type it here:

5. What do you think of the planned list on page 6?

I support it a lot

I support it

? I do not know

I do not support it

I strongly do not support it

6. Should properties that cannot install the things on the list have to meet a different standard?

No – these properties will meet the standard when they have installed all the measures that are right for their building type, even if this is few or no measures

Yes – they should have to meet a different standard and there should be more things on the list (like solid wall insulation, solid floor insulation and flat roof insulation).

They should have to install all of these if they can.

Yes – they should have to meet a different standard, and more things should be on the list.

They should only have to install some of these if they can and they should get extra time to do this.

? I do not know

7. Do we need a different way to set the minimum energy efficiency standard?

Yes

No

? I do not know

Please tell us more. Type your answer here:

8. Should bioenergy be allowed?

You can choose more than 1 answer.

No, it should not be allowed

Yes, it should be allowed for buildings already using it

Yes, it should be allowed for buildings who have no other clean heating system

Yes, it should be used more

Tell us more about your answer.

Type it here:

Property Purchases

We plan that when people buy a property they must make sure it stops using polluting heating before a certain amount of time has passed.

This time is called a grace period.

We are not sure how long to give people and we want to know what you think about this.

We think between 2 and 5 years is right.

A cost cap

We know that making changes will be expensive and that will be a worry for some people.

We are thinking of using a cost cap – this means the most amount of money that should be spent to meet the Heat in Buildings Standard.

There are a range of ways that a cost cap could be set:

• a flat cap of:
  • a cost that applies to all homes
  • a cost that applies to all businesses
• a size-based cap based on the size of the property – for example a large property would pay more
• a purchase price-based cap – a cost that applies to all buildings based on the price paid for the property

Public buildings

The Bill would include powers to make all buildings owned by a Scottish public authority use clean heating by 2038.

We may have other powers that would make public sector organisations do work by 2038.

Questions on Property Purchases

9. Do you support the plan that a polluting heating system should be changed to a clean system after a property is bought?

I support it a lot

I support it

? I do not know

I do not support it

I strongly do not support it

Tell us more about your answer. Type it here:

10. Do you agree that people should get timeto stop their use of polluting heating in a property they have bought?

yes, it should be 2 years

yes it should be 3 years

yes it should be 4 years

yes it should be 5 years

no – there should be no extra time.

Tell us more about your answer. Type it here:

11. Do you support the plan to limit the costs people will have to pay when they buy a new property?

I support it a lot

I support it

? I do not know

I do not support it

I strongly do not support it

12. Which cost cap do you support?

A flat cost cap

A size cost cap

A purchase price cost cap

None

Another way - please tell us what.

Type your answer here:

13. Do you support the idea of asking people to change to a clean heating system at another time - for example when replacing the heating in your home or business?

I support it a lot

I support it

? I do not know

I do not support it

I strongly do not support it

Please tell us more about your answer.

Type it here: