‘(1)A parish council or community council may encourage or promote any of the following—

(a)microgeneration within their area;

(b)the use within their area of electricity generated, or heat produced, by microgeneration;

(c)efficiency in the use, by persons in their area, of electricity, heat, gas, fuel and other descriptions or sources of energy;

(d)reductions in the amounts of such energy, or sources of energy, used by persons in their area;

(e)production in their area of—

(i)biomass, or

(ii)any fuel derived from biomass;

(f)use in their area of, or of electricity generated, or heat produced, from biomass or any such fuel.

(2)The power conferred by subsection (1) includes, in particular, power—

(a)on application, to provide information about goods or services available within their area offered or provided otherwise than by a person mentioned in section 142(1) of the Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) (provision of information, etc, relating to matters affecting local government), or

(b)to provide advice or assistance,

for the purpose of encouraging or facilitating any of the matters mentioned in that subsection.

(3)Nothing in this section authorises a parish council or community council to provide any financial assistance by—

(a)making a grant or loan,

(b)giving a guarantee or indemnity, or

(c)investing by acquiring share or loan capital.

(4)The power conferred by this section is exercisable by a council only to the extent that they do not (apart from this section or section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) (power of local authorities to incur expenditure for certain purposes not otherwise authorised)) otherwise have the power.

(5)For the purposes of subsections (4) to (7B) of section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70)—

(a)any expenditure incurred by a parish council or community council under this section is to be treated as having been incurred under that section, and

(b)any purpose for which expenditure may be incurred under this section is to be treated as a purpose for which such a council are authorised by that section to incur expenditure.

(6)Subsection (5) applies to expenditure incurred by a parish council or community council under section 142 of the Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) on information as to the services provided by them under this section, or otherwise relating to their functions under this section, as it applies to expenditure incurred under this section.

(7)The appropriate person may by order amend the list of matters mentioned in subsection (1) by—

(a)adding any other matter whose addition would in the opinion of the person making the order be likely to contribute to reduction of greenhouse gases in England and Wales;

(b)omitting any matter for the time being included in the list.

(8)In subsection (7), “the appropriate person” means—

(a)in relation to England, the Secretary of State, and

(b)in relation to Wales, the National Assembly for Wales.

(9)The power conferred by subsection (7) includes—

(a)power to make different provision for different cases, and

(b)power to make such supplemental or consequential provision (including provision modifying this section) and such transitional or saving provision as the person making the order thinks fit.

(10)The power of the Secretary of State to make an order under subsection (7) is exercisable by statutory instrument.

(11)No order under that subsection may be made by the Secretary of State unless a draft of the order has been—

(a)laid before Parliament, and

(b)approved by a resolution of each House.’.—[Malcolm Wicks.]

Brought up, and read the First and Second time.

Amendment proposed, to the proposed new clause, (a), leave out subsection 3(a).—[Gregory Barker.]

Question, That the amendment be made, put and negatived.

Clause added to the Bill.