http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/217736/0095208.pdf

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
A consultation exercise commenced on the 30 June 2009 to seek comments on proposals to amend the guidance contained within the Technical Handbooks in Section 6 (energy) and minor changes to section 3 (environment). The closing date for the consultation was 2 October 2009. Consultation proposals were placed on the Building Standards Division (BSD) website and over 500 key stakeholders were invited to respond. Consultees were encouraged to respond on any aspect of the proposals but were specifically invited to comment on targeted issues.

The key objectives of the proposed amendments are the delivery of a 30% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions in new buildings and new building work. Consultation proposals also proposed limited measures which would apply improvement to existing buildings where new building work took place.

There were 82 responses to the consultation. A detailed analysis of the content of all the consultation responses has been carried out by the Building Standards Division (BSD) of the Scottish Government in consultation with the Building Standards Advisory Committee (BSAC) - Energy Working Party. The Division have considered the wide range of both general and detailed comments from consultation respondents.

The majority of respondents are offered positive comment on the review and the technical areas addressed. There was recognition of the need to improve the energy performance of new buildings as part of addressing the Government’s agenda for addressing the challenges posed by Climate Change, with the need to improve existing building stock also flagged.

The analysis of comments did not identify any strong barriers or objections to the proposed changes, though some key stakeholders questioned the introduction of proposed changes, and attendant costs at this time, in the current financial climate.
The Building Standards Advisory Committee (BSAC) energy working party met on 5 November 2009 and 28 January 2010, firstly to review the responses received from the consultation exercise and approve the various recommendations included in this report, then to comment on revisions to proposed standards and guidance.