EWS IN BRIEF Coal mine decision due in July Michael Gove is set to make a decision by 7 July on controversial plans for the UKs first new deep coal mine in decades, the projects developer, West Cumbria Mining, has said. The Planning Inspectorate has submitted its report to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up on the application for the mine, off the coast of Whitehaven in West Cumbria. The company has said the mine would supply metallurgical coal for steel-making rather than be burnt for energy. The inspectorate has been handling the application after it was called in last year. Ineos offers to build shale gas pilot Ineos has written to the government offering to develop a fully functioning shale gas extraction test site to demonstrate that the technology can be deployed safely in the UK. Against the backdrop of spiralling worldwide gas prices following Russias invasion of Ukraine, founder and chairman of the energy and chemicals giant, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, said exploiting the UKs domestic reserves of shale gas would cut the countrys gas costs and ensure its long-term energy independence. Ineos said renewable energy was not yet mature enough to meet the UKs energy needs and that gas would be needed for three decades as the country moves away from burning fossil fuels. Boiler Upgrade Scheme opens The governments Boiler Upgrade Scheme went live at the beginning of April. Under the 450m initiative, grants of up to 5,000 will be available to homes and some non-domestic buildings switching from gas heating to an electric heat pump or, in limited circumstances, a biomass boiler. The scheme, which is open to properties located in England and Wales, will accept grant applications from 23 May, and is expected to run for three years. Gove accuses manufacturers of lack of action over cladding Minister says sector should be doing more to remediate fire-safety issues The government will pursue product manufacturers for the remediation costs of residential blocks found to be unsafe in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster, Michael Gove has warned. The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities outlined the warning in a letter to the Construction Products Association (CPA) chief executive Peter Caplehorn, alongside an announcement that housebuilders have agreed to contribute 2bn to fix 11-storey-plus blocks they have developed over the past 30 years. Gove stated that he saw little to suggest that manufacturers are ready to show leadership and play their part in bringing this unacceptable situation to an end. He wrote: It is unacceptable that there has been no clear acknowledgement that actions taken by cladding and insulation manufacturers have contributed to the problem, and that manufacturers have, individually and collectively, failed to come forward with a proposal for playing their part in addressing it. In response, Caplehorn wrote to Gove stating that CPA members understand the urgency of finding a solution. However, he said that members were troubled by the lack of detail in terms of scope and definitions for the work and the lack of support from valuers, insurers and the mortgage sectors. Michael Gove Gove stated that officials have been instructed to do whatever it takes to hold manufacturers to account through powers in the Building Safety Bill, which is going through parliament and is designed to safeguard leaseholders from remediation costs. He added that a new recovery unit will pursue firms that have failed to do the right thing, including through the courts, and that he will consider carefully how to use his other powers to make sure there are significant commercial and reputational consequences for those firms that have not stepped up. The 2bn contribution from developers is on top of 3bn they will be providing through an expansion of the Building Safety Levy. Pickles denies deregulating fire safety Former communities secretary of state Lord Pickles has told the Grenfell Tower inquiry that he was not aware officials in his ministry thought the coalition governments drive to cut red tape applied to Building Regulations designed to curb fire risks. The peer, who had responsibility for Building Regulations in his role as Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government from 2010-15, told the ongoing inquiry on 7 April that building safety regulations were exempt from the policy promoted by David Camerons government. Under the so-called one in, one out rule, ministers had to identify an existing piece of legislation to be scrapped for every new one proposed. Brian Martin, who was responsible for the cladding guidance in a part-time role on secondment from the BRE, told the inquiry on 28 March that there had been a lot of pressure relating to deregulation. He said this pressure had ramped up after the Conservative Party victory at the 2015 General Election, after which regulation was seen as a dirty word. However, Lord Pickles said it was utterly inexplicable and he was genuinely amazed that officials working on the Building Regulations and, specifically, the Approved Document B fire safety guidance thought they were subject to the deregulatory policy. He said an official at Martins level should have been wholly concerned with technical matters and not have made political assumptions. 6 May 2022 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE May 22 pp06 News.indd 6 22/04/2022 15:04