Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many full time equivalent staff were employed in the Investment Security Unit as of 6 July 2022.
Answered by Jane Hunt
As of 6 July 2022, there are 94 full time equivalent posts in the Investment Security Unit. As with any organisation, actual staffing levels fluctuate over time. The ISU operates a ‘hub and spoke’ model, bringing together expertise from across government and the intelligence community to scrutinise acquisitions and assess the need for intervention to protect the UK’s national security, ensuring the Business Secretary can make well evidenced decisions.
The Investment Security Group team was previously based in the Cabinet Office but moved to BEIS in April to form the basis of the ISU.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many applications have been made to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme since its launch.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme has received 1,966 applications from 23rd May to 17th June 2022.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many officials in the Business British Bank sponsoring team within his Department have a professional background in banking regulation; and how that number has changed in each of the last three years.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government’s sponsorship team for the British Business Bank is split across the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and UK Government Investments (UKGI). Currently four colleagues on the team have private sector professional experience in the financial services sector (2021: four, 2020: two). The BBB is not (and has never been) a regulated bank, given its wholesale model, i.e. ordinarily delivering through delivery partners, with no direct relationship with SME borrowers. Neither BEIS nor UKGI perform the function of a regulator with respect to BBB.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the levels of floating offshore wind deployment required by 2035 to meet the Sixth Carbon Budget.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
By 2035, all our electricity will need to come from low carbon sources, subject to security of supply. A low-cost, net zero consistent electricity system is most likely to be composed predominantly of wind (fixed bottom and floating) and solar generation. The UK is already generating enough electricity from offshore wind to power every home in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland twice over.
To help keep us on track for our Carbon Budget 6 and net zero targets we will need to deploy substantial volumes of floating offshore wind. Our 2030 target for floating offshore wind is a stepping stone to further growth in the UK, which will develop opportunities in the associated industrial supply chain putting us at the forefront of this new technology.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when his Department plans to publish its analysis of potential offshore wind development scenarios which could be in place by 2050.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
This study is led by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, The Crown Estate and Crown Estate Scotland, with consultancy support from Arup. It is part of the Offshore Wind Evidence and Change Programme, and is due to be completed in spring 2022.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
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 plans to take to ensure that households on pay as you go meter tariffs will receive the £200 energy bill discount.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government is developing this policy with key industry and consumer stakeholders to ensure it can be delivered in a convenient way for customers and can get the benefit to eligible households, including those on pre-payment meters. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will consult on the scheme in the spring.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when his Department plans to publish an update of the reforms to the Electrical Performance Certificate (EPC) to take into account the performance of heat pumps and other renewable electrical sources.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Electrical Performance Certificates (EPCs) use an Energy Efficient Rating to measure energy performance based on the estimated running costs of the building. Since energy costs can be a significant outlay, it is important homeowners and occupiers are aware of the running costs of their property. Using the Energy Efficient Rating ensures that recommendations generated by the EPC lead to a reduction in energy cost. Given the higher cost of electricity relative to gas, the presence of a heat pump may result in a lower Energy Efficient Rating without additional measures to reduce energy demand, such as insulation.
The Government has recently reinstated the Environmental Impact Rating on the EPC, which measures energy performance based on carbon dioxide emissions, and recognises lower carbon measures such as heat pumps. Recent consultations on policies that use EPCs have sought views on alternative metric options to both reduce emissions and keep energy bills low. The responses to these consultations are being analysed and Government responses will be published in due course.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if his Department will reconsider its decision to refuse the New Scientist’s Freedom of Information request to publish a spreadsheet showing by how much individual policies in the Net Zero Strategy will reduce emissions.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In the Net Zero Strategy, the Government outlines measures to transition to a green and sustainable future, helping businesses and consumers to move to clean power, supporting hundreds of thousands of well-paid jobs and leveraging up to £90 billion of private investment by 2030.
Each year the Department publishes updated energy and emissions projections, analysing and projecting future energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in the UK. The Government will publish an updated set of Energy and Emissions projections in due course. This will set out emissions reductions from those specific Net Zero Strategy measures where decisions on the design of the associated individual policy intervention are sufficiently advanced to meet Energy and Emissions projections publication standards.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department plans to publish information on how much individual policies announced in the Net Zero Strategy are projected to cut emissions by.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
In the Net Zero Strategy, the Government outlines measures to transition to a green and sustainable future, helping businesses and consumers to move to clean power, supporting hundreds of thousands of well-paid jobs and leveraging up to £90 billion of private investment by 2030.
Each year the Department publishes updated energy and emissions projections, analysing and projecting future energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in the UK. The Government will publish an updated set of Energy and Emissions projections in due course. This will set out emissions reductions from those specific Net Zero Strategy measures where decisions on the design of the associated individual policy intervention are sufficiently advanced to meet Energy and Emissions projections publication standards.
Asked by: Darren Jones (Labour - Bristol North West)
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 merits of extending the application period for the Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme beyond its planned closing date on 31 March 2022.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government intends to close the Domestic Renewable Heat Incentive to new applications on 31 March 2022. This will be followed by the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), which is scheduled to launch in April 2022. The BUS will provide a more targeted, accessible, and simpler offer, by providing upfront capital grants to support the installation of low carbon heat technologies.