140 Mr. Stafford asked the Minister for the Environment if, in the interest of water conservation, he considers that a secondary return supply on the hot water systems in all new homes should be mandatory.

I assume that the question refers to a plumbing layout which is designed to reduce the length of time which a hot water tap would have to be run before hot water is delivered. I am advised that, in a normal dwelling, a compact plumbing layout should obviate the need for special measures of the kind referred to in the question and avoid the potential additional energy consumption which could arise from such measures.