Private Rented Sector: Electrical Safety Checks

Lord Cunningham of Felling Excerpts

Wednesday 6th December 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for putting that on the record. This is the very nature of devolution. It should not amaze noble Lords in this House that Scotland and Wales on occasion do things differently in devolved areas. That does not mean that we do not talk and learn lessons. In the DCLG in particular, we have a devolution forum that meets regularly to discuss these issues so that we can learn from each other.

[Lord Cunningham of Felling (Lab)]

My Lords, I cannot speak for Scotland or Wales, but does the Minister recognise that in England, particularly in university towns and cities, all sorts of properties are in multiple occupation and local authorities—including, I might say, Labour authorities—take no account of what is going on, with blocked flues, gas fires with no exhausts and electrical failures? As we know from the record, many students have died as a consequence of this totally unacceptable situation. What are the Government going to do to address it?

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, the noble Lord speaks with some justification about issues primarily of enforcement. Local authorities have powers available to them that they should be exercising. I am not sure whether he was intending to bring in the carbon monoxide situation where, in fact, mortality is very low and there are provisions in relation to enforcement of the regulations on solid fuel. That does not exist at the moment in relation to gas, but a working party is looking at this matter. There is a consultation on it, which started on 7 November.

Hinkley Point

Lord Cunningham of Felling Excerpts

Wednesday 11th May 2016 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, I hesitate to disagree with my noble friend but I do on just about all counts. We need Hinkley C and there is a very strong economic case, as I have indicated, in terms of jobs and the power that is necessary. I agree that we also need other nuclear plants. We are of course developing those as well to help us transition away from reliance on coal.

[Lord Cunningham of Felling (Lab)]

My Lords, does the Minister recognise that, with all due respect, we do not need his noble friend to put the boot into Hinkley C? The French Cabinet and the board of EDF are quite capable of doing that for themselves. The Minister mentioned other projects. What is the latest situation with respect to the NuGen proposals to build three AP1000 reactors at Moorside in west Cumbria or the Horizon project to build reactors at Wylfa on Anglesey and in South Gloucestershire?

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, President Hollande and Emmanuel Macron, the French Finance and Economy Minister, are both very much committed to the EDF project. The noble Lord is right to highlight the importance of NuGen in Moorside and Horizon at Wylfa Newydd on Anglesey. They are both proceeding quite independently of Hinkley Point C.

Energy Security: Hinkley Point

Lord Cunningham of Felling Excerpts

Thursday 10th March 2016 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

No, my Lords, I do not agree with that. The costs that are increasing are essentially those of EDF. We have a strike price that is agreed, constant and unchanging. I believe that it is a good deal for the Government and that the supply chain is secure. The noble Lord should know that 60% of jobs in the supply chain are already guaranteed for the UK.

[Lord Cunningham of Felling (Lab)]

My Lords, is it not sadly clear that the ability to be energy self-sufficient, where nuclear power should be making a significant contribution, is jeopardised because we are unable to build the power stations ourselves? We are dependent on the French, the Chinese and the Japanese. Let me say, in case anyone wants to disagree, I do not hold the present Administration responsible for those circumstances. However, as the Minister will recall, the Chancellor of the Exchequer made an important announcement in the Autumn Statement about support for the development of small modular reactors. Will the Minister tell the House how much support has been given to date, to whom it has gone and for what purpose?

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, the noble Lord is absolutely right about the importance of small modular reactors. He will know that £250 million was announced in the spending review specifically for that purpose in this Parliament. We will bring forward proposals on that early this year—that is, in the spring.

Energy: Onshore Wind

Lord Cunningham of Felling Excerpts

Tuesday 23rd June 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, there is ongoing discussion with the devolved Administrations. I am not sure whether I used the word “consult”. I said there had been contact, certainly, with the devolved Administrations and contact that is continuing, particularly on the issue of the grace period where we have indicated that we are very happy to talk to stakeholders.

[Lord Cunningham of Felling (Lab)]

My Lords, every nuclear submarine built in the United Kingdom has had a propulsion unit built by Rolls-Royce. We have decades of experience in the construction of small nuclear reactors. This is an amazing opportunity for our country to take up the point made by his noble friend and develop these small nuclear reactors for urban use.

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, the noble Lord speaks with great experience. He used to represent the area of Sellafield and I take his contribution very seriously. As I have indicated, we are looking at the issue of small nuclears at the moment.

Climate Change

Lord Cunningham of Felling Excerpts

Wednesday 17th June 2015 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb]

My Lords—

[Lord Cunningham of Felling (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Taverne (LD)]

My Lords—

Electricity Supply: Decarbonisation

Lord Cunningham of Felling Excerpts

Monday 15th June 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, there is no question of unilateral masochism on this issue. We are anticipating agreement in Paris; all the signs are very favourable. It is not just Paris, of course; we have to ensure that there is monitoring thereafter. There is no plan B for the United Kingdom or the rest of the world.

[Lord Cunningham of Felling (Lab)]

My Lords, is it not obvious to everyone who has been engaged in these debates for many years that we have no hope of meeting the onerous impositions regarding climate change—including commitments from previous Labour Governments—without significant development of civil nuclear power? Why are there such repeated delays in the development of civil nuclear power in our country? Is the Minister not also concerned about recent reports that the French themselves, who are involved in our recent project, have found manifest failings in their own latest civil nuclear reactor at Flamanville?

[Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth]

My Lords, civil nuclear is certainly an essential part of our energy mix—I welcome what the noble Lord said about the Labour Party—and that continues to be the case. We are confident that Hinkley C will be delivered by 2023, and there are several other nuclear power stations in the line after that. Obviously, we learn from the French and the Finnish experience with regard to delivery.