To ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps he is taking to ensure that gas appliances are safe and regularly maintained.[15160]

A carbon monoxide safety awareness campaign is currently under way to warn as many households as possible in the country about the dangers of carbon monoxide, including the need to make sure that heating systems are serviced once a year by a qualified engineer.Gas appliances made or sold in the UK including imports must comply with the Gas Appliances (Safety) Regulations 1995, which implement into UK law the Gas Appliances Directive, and this Department is in the process of considering the results of a formal consultation on proposed regulations to control the safety of second-hand gas appliances.Gas safety legislation requires landlords to maintain in a safe condition, gas appliances that they own in let property. Failure to do so can result in unlimited fines and up to two years imprisonment.