Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of decoupling the cost of renewable energy from gas prices.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) is considering how to reduce the role of gas as a price setter for electricity. This includes reforms for bringing forward investment in low carbon generation, leading to less frequent use of gas, as well as options around wholesale market reform.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Departments position on the UK's membership of the Energy Charter Treaty of the withdrawal of (a) Germany, (b) France, (c) the Netherlands, (d) Spain, (e) Poland and (f) Luxembourg from that treaty.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The UK is closely monitoring the situation surrounding the Energy Charter Treaty’s modernisation process, including the positions taken by other Contracting Parties.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of changes to fireworks regulations in Scotland.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Scottish Government has introduced legislative changes on fireworks in response to issues specific to Scotland. The Government continues to monitor these changes and work closely with all Devolved Administrations to ensure the safety of the public across the UK.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential role of solar energy generation in tackling the (a) climate and (b) cost of living crisis.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Solar is a key part of the UK’s energy mix and the Government’s strategy for decarbonising the electricity system by 2035. The Government needs sustained growth in both rooftop and ground mounted capacity in the next decade to support delivery of net zero. Utility scale solar is now one of the cheapest forms of electricity generation. Deploying more home grown solar will help limit household electricity bills and ensure Britain is less affected by fluctuations in volatile global gas prices.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to increase solar energy production.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The UK’s flagship Contracts for Difference scheme is the main mechanism for incentivising large scale renewable generation, including solar and will move to annual auctions from 2023, helping further to accelerate the deployment of clean, low-cost generation.
The Smart Export Guarantee ensures small-scale low-carbon electricity generators, such as homes or small businesses installing solar panels, get payment for electricity they export to the grid. The Government has removed VAT on residential solar panels and is providing financial incentives to encourage businesses to install rooftop solar. The Government is exploring options to facilitate low-cost finance to help households with installation costs and reviewing permitted development rights to support deployment in commercial settings.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that the UK's membership of the Energy Charter Treaty does not affect progress towards environmental targets.
Answered by Graham Stuart
On 24 June 2022, Contracting Parties came to an agreement in principle on the amendments to modernise the Energy Charter Treaty. The modernised Energy Charter Treaty recognises the urgent need to address climate change and align with the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement. It promotes an accelerated energy transition and reduces the risk of successful challenge to UK net zero policies.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make it his policy to align regulations for the specification of charging ports on electronic devices sold in the UK with any common charging standard introduced by the EU for those devices.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government is aware of the EU’s proposal for a single charging solution for certain electronic devices and there are no current plans to introduce similar requirements in UK domestic law.
As we do with other international trading partners, we have an ongoing dialogue with EU institutions on relevant regulatory changes both in the EU and the UK. The Government will continue to monitor developments in this area.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Minister for Brexit Opportunities and Government Efficiency has had discussions with EU officials on proposals to introduce a common charging standard for electronic devices.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government is aware of the EU’s proposal for a single charging solution for certain electronic devices and there are no current plans to introduce similar requirements in UK domestic law.
As we do with other international trading partners, we have an ongoing dialogue with EU institutions on relevant regulatory changes both in the EU and the UK. The Government will continue to monitor developments in this area.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to steps to accelerate the transition from animal research to human relevant science.
Answered by George Freeman
UK Research and Innovation is committed to ensuring that the UK remains at the forefront of global efforts to reduce, refine or replace the use of animals in research, and provides core funding to the National Centre for 3Rs of £49.1 million over 5 years.
The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council has just launched £4 million of funding targeted at developing the next generation of non-animal technology and driving the uptake of existing non-animal technology.
The Medical Research Council launched the new Experimental Medicine Panel in 2020, which has an annual budget of £10 million, and is dedicated to investigating diseases directly in humans using non-invasive techniques.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an assessment of the impact of the covid-19 pandemic on garment workers in (a) Bangladesh and (b) Cambodia who are involved in UK supply chains.
Answered by Paul Scully
No assessment has been made.