David Mowat
Main Page: David Mowat (Conservative - Warrington South)(13 years, 6 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Charles Hendry
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman, who was two of the best of the last batch of Energy Ministers. I had a meeting with the executive director of the International Energy Agency this week to talk about its work and about the energy outlook. We broadly share the analysis that we are moving into a period of widely available and relatively affordable gas, but the danger of that is that it could put off investment in gas development internationally, which could create shortages further down the line.
David Mowat (Warrington South) (Con)
T3. Over the past couple of years, work has commenced in countries other than the UK on about 60 nuclear power stations, which will provide cheap, economically sustainable energy across the world. Does the Minister agree that this represents an opportunity for our own office for nuclear development, and will his Department support it in its endeavours to secure exports?
Charles Hendry
One of the advantages that we have is that, because we do not have a national champion, we have an independent regulator who is robust and understood to be very forceful and effective. We can encourage other countries to look at that as well. The work we are doing across the piece on nuclear decommissioning and development is also critical.