Asked by: Danny Beales (Labour - Uxbridge and South Ruislip)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps Great British Energy is taking to help public services use more renewable energy.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
GBE’s first investment, together with government, included £180 million for around 200 schools and 200 hospitals in England to install solar power and complementary technology, cutting energy costs.
Eleven school installations have already happened, enabling estimated annual bill savings of £175,000 total.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 7 January (HL3653), whether they considered the impact of (1) the removal of the ban on onshore wind generation, (2) the increase in offshore wind generation, (3) the increase in solar power generation, and (4) Great British Energy, in their assessments of the carbon dioxide equivalent emissions in 2030.
Answered by Lord Wilson of Sedgefield - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We will deliver an updated plan that sets out the policy package out to the end of Carbon Budget 6 in 2037 for all sectors of the economy by October 2025. This will outline the policies and proposals needed to deliver Carbon Budgets 4-6 and our Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) on a pathway to net zero, including for onshore wind, offshore wind and solar power generation, and describing Great British Energy’s potential role in supporting these sectors.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what plans he has to assess land use changes in applications for new energy infrastructure.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The implications of land use change are already considered as part of the examination and determination of all applications for new energy infrastructure. In future, optimal locations for energy infrastructure will be identified by the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP). We are ensuring that, in its development, the SSEP considers wider demands on land and sea, including (but not limited to) food production, transport, water supply, nature recovery and fisheries. The SSEP’s recommendations will not take precedence over other land uses but will exist alongside other sectoral spatial plans and frameworks.
Asked by: James Naish (Labour - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the proportion of UK solar-panel imports sourced from Xinjiang-based polysilicon manufacturers sanctioned by the United States; and whether he plans to introduce a full import ban on such products.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring UK businesses are not complicit in forced labour and human rights violations.
In the Trade Strategy, the Government launched a review of its approach to responsible business conduct policy. The review will consider the effectiveness of the UK’s current Responsible Business Conduct measures and alternative policy options to support responsible business practices.
Asked by: Darren Paffey (Labour - Southampton Itchen)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent discussions he has had with Ofgem on ensuring that consumers are treated fairly in relation to historic overpayments to energy network operators; and whether he has considered options for returning any such overpayments to bill payers.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The unexpected inflation shock of 2022-23 increased equity value for network companies due to fixed-rate debt financing. Following a public consultation, Ofgem took action to adjust how it regulates network company investment, deliverables and returns, so this cannot happen again going forward.
Ofgem considered reclaiming previous excess profits but decided against this to avoid raising the cost of capital and costs for consumers. Ofgem has made clear that it expects network companies to use any inflation benefit to accelerate network upgrades and find additional ways to support consumers struggling with bills.
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what information his Department holds on (a) what components used in the power grid were manufactured by Chinese companies and (b) whether (i) Chinese companies and (ii) the Chinese state can (A) access data from and (B) control those components remotely.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The protection and security of the energy sector is a priority of this Government.
HMRC publishes the value and mass of electrical machinery, equipment and parts imported, by country, on its data portal at www.uktradeinfo.com/trade-data/ots-custom-table/.
Foreign investment in critical national infrastructure undergoes the highest levels of scrutiny, and the government has powers to protect energy infrastructure and critical services through a broad range of mitigations, including legislative and regulatory powers. DESNZ works closely with industry and other government departments to maintain a detailed picture of ownership and foreign involvement in energy infrastructure
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to safeguard critical energy infrastructure against the extreme summer temperatures.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Great Britain’s electricity infrastructure is highly resilient and designed to operate in a wide range of conditions. The risks to GB's electricity system from extreme heat are low, but in the unlikely event of any impacts, the energy sector has long-standing plans and procedures to minimise disruption to customers, as set out in the National Emergency Plan for Downstream Gas and Electricity.
Government works closely with industry to minimise the risk of unplanned outages and in line with licence conditions, the National Energy System Operator is required to assess network operators’ resilience to a range of weather events, including extreme temperatures.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of level of consumer information via (a) television and (b) other media outlets by (i) Ofgem and (ii) energy companies of the Radio Teleswitch (RTS) switch off; and whether he has considered the potential merits of instructing Ofgem to increase their media campaign to ensure consumers are aware of the importance of updating obsolete RTS meters.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department agrees that extensive public communications on RTS must be sustained. I continue to meet with Ofgem on a fortnightly basis where the progress of the phase out is discussed, including assessment of communications to consumers.
Suppliers should have already contacted all RTS customers. In advance of any phase out activity in their area, they will contact affected households and businesses, through multiple methods, including door-knocking where necessary, to inform them well ahead of time to arrange a replacement. We expect suppliers to take sufficient action to have confidence that consumers are aware of the consequences of not replacing their RTS meter.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to reduce energy bills.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently.
The creation of Great British Energy will help us to harness clean energy and have less reliance on volatile international energy markets and help in our commitment to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030. This, combined with our Warm Homes Plan to upgrade millions of homes to make them warmer and cheaper to run is how we will drive down energy bills and make cold homes a thing of the past.
We recognise that we need to support households struggling with bills whilst we transition to clean power by 2030. On 19 June we announced that we are expanding the Warm Home Discount to around an additional 2.7 million households. This means that from next winter, around 6 million low-income households will receive the £150 support to help with their energy bill costs.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of aligning the the UK and EU carbon trading systems on meeting the UK's climate targets.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is committed to ensuring that any future linkage of the UK and EU Emissions Trading Schemes remains consistent with the UK’s climate obligations and will not prevent us from pursuing higher ambition.
The “Common Understanding” text agreed between the UK and the EU at the 19th May Summit, states that: "The United Kingdom cap and the United Kingdom reduction pathway will be guided by the United Kingdom’s Climate Change Act obligations and Nationally Determined Contributions,” In addition, a future linking agreement: “should not constrain the European Union and the United Kingdom from pursuing higher environmental ambition, consistent with their international obligations."