The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) provides a discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure that all eligible businesses, including leisure sector and community facilities, are protected from high energy costs this winter period.

Following an HMT-led review, the new Energy Bill Discount Scheme will run from April until March 2024, and will continue to provide a discount to eligible non-domestic customers, including the leisure sector and community facilities.

The Government will also provide over £60 million of new funding for public swimming pools in England for 2023/24.

The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) provides a discount on the wholesale element of gas and electricity bills to ensure all eligible businesses and non-domestic customers, including the leisure sector, who receive their energy from licensed suppliers, are protected from excessively high energy costs over the winter period.

The EBRS discount is applied directly to the energy bills of eligible businesses by their energy providers and therefore we do not have a breakdown of support received by sectors. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has not made an assessment of how many sports and recreation facilities are at risk of closure.

In order to accelerate a reduction in energy demand, the Government is announcing a new long-term ambition to reduce the UK’s final energy consumption from buildings and industry by 15% by 2030 against 2021 levels.

To lead this national effort, a new Energy Efficiency Taskforce will be established. £6 billion of new Government funding will be made available from 2025 to 2028, in addition to the £6.6 billion allocated in this Parliament. This provides long-term funding certainty, supporting the growth of supply chains, and ensuring we can scale up our delivery over time.

Further details on allocation of additional funding and the taskforce will follow in due course.

In order to accelerate a reduction in energy demand, the Government is announcing a new long-term ambition to reduce the UK’s final energy consumption from buildings and industry by 15% by 2030 against 2021 levels.

To lead this national effort, a new Energy Efficiency Taskforce will be established. £6 billion of new Government funding will be made available from 2025 to 2028, in addition to the £6.6 billion allocated in this Parliament. This provides long-term funding certainty, supporting the growth of supply chains, and ensuring we can scale up our delivery over time.

Further details on allocation of additional funding and the taskforce will follow in due course.

Energy Efficiency is a devolved policy, but a national priority. The Government will work closely with devolved administrations as the Taskforce is established, drawing on experience across the UK to meet our national ambition to reduce demand. Further details on allocation of additional funding will follow in due course.

On 14 March, my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister hosted a roundtable of leaders in the UK’s offshore oil and gas industry to discuss domestic energy security, increasing investment in the North Sea oil and gas industry and boosting supply of domestic gas.

The North Sea Transition Authority plans to launch another licensing round in the autumn, taking into account the forthcoming climate compatibility checkpoint.

The UK and EU have now agreed the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) which came into force on 31^st December 2020.

As part of the TCA, the UK and EU have agreed a framework under which both parties may agree arrangements on the recognition of professional qualifications (such as mutual recognition agreements) covering the UK and all 27 EU Member States. The first step towards such an arrangement is for professional bodies or authorities to submit a joint recommendation to the UK-EU Partnership Council. Once an arrangement is adopted under the TCA, UK professionals will be able to use the terms outlined in the arrangement to secure recognition of their professional qualifications, helping them to provide services within EU Member States.

In due course, professionals will be able to take advantage of any profession-specific EU-wide arrangements agreed under the TCA framework. Until this point, UK-qualified professionals who wish to supply services in the EU should seek recognition of their qualifications according to the local laws and regulations of the relevant EU Member State. It is up to appropriate local regulators within alpine nations to determine whether UK-qualified professionals are permitted to practise in their territories.

The Common Training Test (CTT) for ski instructors was established by the European Commission Delegated Regulation 2019/907, and only applies to citizens of EU Member States. Now the Transition Period is over, the CTT no longer applies in the UK and UK ski instructors do not have access to the CTT.

Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, in common with other professionals, UK snow sports instructors who have had their qualifications recognised before the end of the Transition Period, or who applied for recognition before the end of the Transition Period and subsequently have that recognition granted, and who are resident or frontier workers in the EU Member State that recognised them at the end of the Transition Period, will have that recognition protected and will be able to continue to rely upon it.

Following the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, if UK professionals wish to provide services in the EU, the recognition of their professional qualifications across all industries (including snow sports instructors) is subject to the local laws and regulations of individual Member States. Over time, the UK-EU Partnership Council may enter into, and adopt, profession-by-profession mutual recognition agreements.

There are several government-funded schemes available to help support the installation of energy efficiency measures for fuel poor households. The low-income element of the £1.5bn Green Homes Grant vouchers scheme is open to homeowners in receipt of certain benefits. Installation of measures under the scheme will be covered up to a maximum of £10,000. This extra support for low-income households, is likely to help those who are unable to keep their homes warm at a reasonable cost, and who are unable to cover the cost of energy efficiency upgrades to their home.

The Green Home Grant Local Authority Delivery (LAD) Scheme provides an additional £500 million focused on owner occupiers, those in the private and social rented sector, with a household income of under £30,000. The primary purpose of LAD is to raise the energy efficiency rating of low income and low EPC rated homes (rated D, E, F or G), including those living in the worst quality off-gas grid homes.

In addition, the current Energy Company Obligation continues until March 2022. It requires large energy suppliers to deliver energy efficiency measures to fuel poor domestic households. Homeowners on low incomes are eligible under the scheme and low-income private renters living in the least energy efficient homes can also be eligible for solid wall insulation and renewable heating.

The Simple Energy Advice Service (SEA) was launched in 2018, in response to the Government-commissioned Each Home Counts Review, as a digital and phone line service to provide homeowners with impartial and tailored advice on how to cut their energy bills and make their homes greener. Since the launch of SEA, over 1 million unique users have accessed the site. We are committed to improving the SEA website, based on user needs and user research.

At a local level, the Government has provided £4.7 million to six local supply chain demonstration pilots, which are testing new approaches to supporting home energy retrofit in the able-to-pay sector in England. We are also working with Local Authorities through the Local Energy Programme to develop support for local retrofit programmes by addressing local barriers to clean growth activity.

Under consumer law consumers are entitled to a refund within 14 days, depending on the nature of the contract in place. Many businesses are also offering consumers vouchers or alternative dates, which consumers are able to choose should they wish. The Government is engaging with the package travel sector and consumer advocacy bodies to assess the impact of cancellations made in light of the covid-19 outbreak.

The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 protect consumers who have bought package holidays. Under existing consumer law consumers are able to choose a voucher or credit note should they wish. We are engaging with the package travel sector and others to assess the impact of the covid-19 outbreak.

Under consumer law consumers are entitled to a refund within 14 days, depending on the nature of the contract in place. Many businesses are also offering consumers vouchers or alternative dates, which consumers are able to choose should they wish. The Government is engaging with the package travel sector and consumer advocacy bodies to assess the impact of cancellations made in light of the covid-19 outbreak. We recognise the extremely difficult circumstances travel agents are currently facing, which is why on 17 March the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a wide range of support for businesses, in addition to the £30bn support announced in the budget.

Regulators will be in a position to start accepting licence applications for spaceports and spaceflight activities once the Space Industry Bill has been enacted and the supporting secondary legislation and guidance are in place.

Our intention is to lay the main statutory instruments in summer 2019, subject to Government priorities and Parliamentary time. This allows time for the necessary detailed policy development, consultation and drafting of secondary legislation and guidance to support a robust and effective licensing regime. This will be done in close liaison with industry and other stakeholders.

Regulators will be in a position to start accepting licence applications for spaceports and spaceflight activities once the Space Industry Bill has been enacted and the supporting secondary legislation and guidance are in place.

Our intention is to lay the main statutory instruments in summer 2019, subject to Government priorities and Parliamentary time. This allows time for the necessary detailed policy development, consultation and drafting of secondary legislation and guidance to support a robust and effective licensing regime. This will be done in close liaison with industry and other stakeholders.