Sustainable Energy Act 2003

1 Annual reports on progress towards sustainable energy aims U.K.

(1) The Secretary of State must in each calendar year, beginning with 2004, publish a report (“a sustainable energy report”) on the progress made in the reporting period towards—

(a) cutting the United Kingdom’s carbon emissions;

(b) maintaining the reliability of the United Kingdom’s energy supplies;

(c) promoting competitive energy markets in the United Kingdom; F1 ...

(d) reducing the number of people living in fuel poverty in the United Kingdom [F2 ; and

(e) achieving the target set out in section 217(1) of the Housing Act 2004 (target for the energy efficiency of residential accommodation in England).]

[F3 (1A) The report must include, in particular, all such information as the Secretary of State considers appropriate about—

(a) things done during the reporting period for the purposes of the development or the bringing into use of any of the energy sources or technologies mentioned in subsection (1B);

(b) things done during that period for the purpose of ensuring the maintenance of the scientific and engineering expertise available in the United Kingdom that is necessary for the development of potential energy sources (including sources of nuclear energy); F4 ...

[F5 (ba) things done during that period pursuant to section 19 of the Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 for the purpose of promoting community energy projects;

(bb) things done during that period pursuant to section 21 of that Act for the purpose of promoting the use of heat produced from renewable sources;]

(c) things done during that period for the purpose of achieving the energy efficiency aims designated under sections 2 and 3 [F6 of this Act ][F7 ; and

(d) things done during that period for the purpose of implementing the strategy for the promotion of microgeneration in Great Britain published under section 82 of the Energy Act 2004.]

[F8 (1AA) The report must also include estimates of the effect of the progress made in the reporting period towards achieving the target set out in section 217(1) of the Housing Act 2004 on—

(a) emissions of carbon dioxide in England, and

(b) the number of households in which one or more persons are living in fuel poverty.]

(1B) The energy sources and technologies referred to in subsection (1A)(a) are—

(a) clean coal technology;

(b) coal mine methane;

(c) biomass;

(d) biofuels;

(e) fuel cells;

(f) photovoltaics;

(g) wave and tidal generation;

(h) hydrogeneration;

(i) microgeneration;

(j) geothermal sources; and

(k) other sources of energy, and technologies for the production of energy, the use of which would, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, cut the United Kingdom’s carbon emissions.

(1C) The references in subsection (1A) to things done during the reporting period include references to proposals of the Secretary of State published during that period.]

(2) “The reporting period”, for the purposes of [F9 subsections (1) to (1C)], means the year ending with 23 February in the calendar year in question.

(3) Accordingly, the report must be published in that calendar year within the period beginning with 24 February and ending with 31 December (“the publication period”).

(4) A sustainable energy report may either be published as a single report or published in a number of parts during the publication period, and any such report or part may be contained in a document containing other material.

(5) A sustainable energy report must be based on such information as is available to the Secretary of State when the report is completed (except that if it is published in parts, each of those parts must be based on such information as is so available when that part is completed).

(6) For the purposes of this section a person is to be regarded as living in fuel poverty if he is a member of a household living on a lower income in a home which cannot be kept warm at a reasonable cost.

Textual Amendments

F1 Word in s. 1(1)(c) omitted (1.1.2007) by virtue of Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19), ss. 12(2)(a), 28(2)

F2 S. 1(1)(e) and preceding word inserted (1.1.2007) by Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19), ss. 12(2)(b), 28(2)

F3 S. 1(1A)-(1C) inserted (5.10.2004) by Energy Act 2004 (c. 20), ss. 81(2), 198(2); S.I. 2004/2575, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

F4 Word in s. 1(1A)(b) omitted (1.1.2007) by virtue of Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19), ss. 6(a), 28(2)

F5 S. 1(1A)(ba)(bb) inserted (1.1.2007) by Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19), ss. 22(a), 28(2)

F6 Words in s. 1(1A)(c) inserted (1.1.2007) by Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19), ss. 22(b), 28(2)

F7 S. 1(1A)(d) and preceding word inserted (1.1.2007) by Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19), ss. 6(b), 28(2)

F8 S. 1(1AA) inserted (1.1.2007) by Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19), ss. 12(3), 28(2)

F9 Words in s. 1(2) substituted (5.10.2004) by Energy Act 2004 (c. 20), ss. 81(3), 198(2); S.I. 2004/2575, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 1 applied (with modifications) (E.W.S.) (21.8.2006) by Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19), ss. 5(2), 28(1)