To ask the Minister for the Economy to detail the proactive measures that his Department will take to develop and deliver sustainable energy solutions to deliver climate change targets as part of the Executive's agreed Housing Supply Strategy.

My department is fully committed to playing its part in developing and delivering long term sustainable energy solutions that support the achievement of climate change targets in the north while contributing to the Executive’s recently announced Housing Supply Strategy.

The regional Energy Strategy: Path to Net Zero Energy provides the policy framework to decarbonise energy and to mobilise the skills, technologies and behaviours required to transition our economy to net zero.

In this context, my department has recently published a consultation on Low carbon heat support for domestic properties, which will ultimately seek to introduce a support scheme like those operating in Britain and Ireland. This proposed policy initiative is intended to provide households with grants to support the installation of low carbon heating technologies, including heat pumps. In tandem with this approach, we are bringing forward policies to gather evidence on the production of Biomethane and liquid biofuels, to better understand their respective role in the energy transition. This represents a vital step forward in helping households transition to more sustainable and efficient heating systems.

In addition to support for low carbon heating, my department is also preparing a consultation on domestic energy efficiency support. This consultation will help to inform the design, rules, and guidance of future support that aims to address multiple priorities, including support industry growth, reducing energy bills, and cutting carbon emissions through enabling the transition to low carbon heat.

In the interim, ahead of any proposed support scheme, my department will continue to work collaboratively with a range of local partners to leverage and promote existing financial support mechanisms, for heating and energy efficiency, that are already available through the Utility Regulator’s NISEP Scheme.

To support the transition to sustainable energy in housing, we are investing in skills development and innovation to build the workforce needed for renewable energy and construction technologies. This ensures long-term sustainability and growth in the green economy while developing initiatives to encourage growth of the local industry as well as developing an appropriate pipeline of a highly skilled and diverse workforce.

As we transition to net zero, we are mindful of the need to protect consumers from undue financial burdens and to ensure that these solutions are sustainable and equitable, delivering long-term benefits to residents while meeting our climate obligations. Measures such as supporting affordable energy pricing, targeted financial assistance for low-income households, and ensuring ‘just energy transition principles’ are central to our approach.

My officials will continue to work collaboratively across government, the private sector, and the community to deliver on these commitments.