Meeting of the Parliament 14 March 2023
On the point about guidance, yes, there needs to be guidance, but that needs to be developed in partnership with local government, and not be top-down guidance from Government—the member gave the impression that he was asking for the latter. That is very much the approach that we want to take. Of course, the intelligence unit is one of the routes by which we can achieve the guidance that local authority colleagues need.
On additional funding, I would like to be able to give local government more funding to support it in this area of work, but we work within a limited budget and we have to recognise that, in a fixed budget settlement, if we are to put more money into local government, it has to come from somewhere else. Of course, where we can—such as through the community hubs that I mentioned—we are putting in additional investment in order to support the expansion of community-based approaches.
I mentioned the local heat and energy efficiency strategies, which are at the heart of what I believe is a place-based, locally led and tailored approach to the heat transition. The strategies will set out the long-term plan for decarbonising heat in buildings and improving energy efficiency across entire local authority areas. They will support local planning, co-ordination and delivery of heat transition across communities, helping to target investment where it can make the greatest impact.