Energy Grid Resilience

Debate between Lord Sikka and Lord Hunt of Kings Heath

Tuesday 6th May 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

—again. I think that is absolutely right. So much misinformation about energy policy appears in social media and in the media generally. We are doing our best; sometimes Governments are not listened to as much as we would wish. There is no question that, for instance, some of the criticism in relation to energy prices is put at the door of net zero when actually it is because of the uncertainty and volatility of international gas markets. There is a lot that we need to do collectively to get over the reality of why climate change presents such a threat, why, unless we can tackle these issues, we will probably continue to have high energy prices, and why we need to adapt and mitigate as fast as we can. I do not have any easy answers, but it is a matter we are giving great consideration to at the moment.

[Lord Sikka (Lab)]

My Lords, resilience is something which is always in the process of being made. It requires embracing emerging technologies. Thorium-based nuclear energy is much safer and cheaper than uranium- or plutonium-based nuclear energy. China and India are leading the race, and I have never seen “thorium” in any UK policy document to do with long-term energy supply. Can the Minister say what investment the UK Government have made or intend to make in thorium-based technology?

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

No, my Lords, I am not aware of any investment, but I will double-check. I am very happy to discuss this with my noble friend. We should also mention nuclear fusion as having great potential. The previous Government invested, and this Government are investing, considerable amounts of money in it. The UK has a huge potential lead in this exciting area and there are real signs we may see some positive outcomes in the next few years. I am certainly prepared to engage with my noble friend on this.

Energy Prices

Debate between Lord Sikka and Lord Hunt of Kings Heath

Wednesday 26th March 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Sikka]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to control energy prices.

[The Minister of State, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath) (Lab)]

My Lords, the Government believe that the best way to protect bill payers and to mitigate the energy price spikes that we saw in 2022 is through our mission to deliver clean power by 2030. Under the default tariff price cut, Ofgem has capped the profits of energy suppliers in the retail market. In addition, the Government are reviewing Ofgem’s role to ensure that it is a strong consumer champion.

[Lord Sikka (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for the reply. We need a glimpse of reality here: between 2020 and 2024, the UK’s 20 biggest energy companies made an operating profit of £483.4 billion—yes, noble Lords heard that figure correctly—which is a major cause of social problems. Steel, shipbuilding and engineering industries are struggling, 6.1 million households are in fuel poverty and 110,000 pensioners a year are dying in fuel poverty. The Government have three non-mutually exclusive policy options: price controls, public ownership, and worker-elected and consumer-elected directors on company boards. What proposals would the Minister like to offer for ending profiteering in the energy industry?

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

My Lords, I am very grateful to my noble friend for his support. The issue of prices is of course serious for both business and domestic customers. That is why we have the warm home discount and the support given to businesses that use energy intensively. Clearly, this is a continuing issue that will be solved only if we can wean ourselves off the international gas markets, which we are going to do by moving towards clean power. I just say to my noble friend that Ofgem does in fact cap the profits of energy suppliers in the retail market; they are capped at 2.4%.