Large Solar Farms

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Tuesday 21st March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Nigel Adams (Selby and Ainsty) (Con)]

I very much welcome the opportunity that this evening’s debate gives me to raise the matter of large-scale solar farms. There have been previous debates on the subject in Westminster Hall, and I know that many right hon. and hon. Members have raised concerns about the loss of food production and the planning process. I note that there are one or two colleagues in the Chamber this evening who may want to chip in.

Food security and energy security are competing requirements in our economy, and we must recognise that. No doubt someone listening to this debate—it is usually some sort of blogger on some eco-site—will report that we are all anti-renewable energy, which, of course, is not what the debate is about and could not be further from the truth; it is, in fact, quite the opposite.

Let me start by saying that electricity generation from solar has been a major success, and has come a long way in the last 12 years. Last Sunday at noon, 5.74 GW out of a total of 33.1 GW delivered by the national grid was from solar. Total solar generating capacity is now about 14.6 GW, and the energy strategy objective is to increase that fivefold to 70 GW by 2035. I understand that, by the end of January 2023, there were 1,360 operational solar farms covering about 100,000 acres. It is estimated that a further 160 solar farms have been approved and there are several hundred more planning applications in the pipeline, including at least seven nationally significant infrastructure planning applications which are over 50 MW. That planning and construction pipeline could be equivalent to a further 150,000 acres of solar panels, the majority of which would be ground-mounted on farmland.

To date, this solar expansion has received a good level of public support. In my constituency, the first applications, in 2015, were approved with the benefit of public support. They were typically 5 MW, and located near industrial estates. By 2018, 20 MW applications were coming forward, and by 2020, typical applications were just under 50 MW—the maximum under which the local planning authority was responsible for deciding the applications. Now there is public concern about the increasing number of applications, and the more than tenfold increase in the size of some of them.

[Matt Hancock (West Suffolk) (Ind)]

As a supporter of solar energy, I think the central point is that, if there is no local support for projects because they are in the wrong place, that will undermine support for renewable energy. In my constituency, I have supported many solar projects and continue to support them now, but the Sunnica project goes right round villages and destroys local amenity. The consultation has been woeful, and both county and local councils are against the project, as is the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whose constituency it also covers. Is not the point that those who support solar should support it in the right place, and not get people’s backs up with terrible consultation and projects that should be sent back to the drawing board?

Digital Economy Bill (Eleventh sitting)

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Committee Debate: 11th sitting: House of Commons
Tuesday 1st November 2016 Public Bill Committees

[Nigel Adams]

Indeed, there is a sound of silence on this particular review response.

I am delighted that the Minister has committed to following up the Secretary of State’s pledge to hold a meeting before Christmas. With something as technical as this, it is crucial to get all the players round the table: primary, secondary ticketing sites, representatives of both the fans and artists and, dare I say it, the Minister could probably do with me there as well.

[Matt Hancock]

On the response to the Waterson report, it will be published in due course. The question is whether it is best to hold back publication until after the work I have just committed to is done, to incorporate fully the views of the fans, artists, the ticket-selling industry and, potentially, even my hon. Friend.

[Nigel Adams]

It would be a sensible move. Perhaps it is not a bad idea to have this round-table and take soundings from the industry before the Government respond to the review; I do not think that the Waterson review goes quite far enough in tackling bots, although there is plenty of good work in there for the Government to consider.

I am happy to withdraw my new clause at this stage, following the Minister’s clear commitment to solve the problem. I am hopeful that the issue will be resolved at some stage during the passage of the Bill. I beg to ask leave to withdraw the motion.

Clause, by leave, withdrawn.

--- Later in debate ---

[Nigel Adams]

I rise briefly to speak to the new clause tabled by the hon. Member for Cardiff West. I understand that it seeks to clarify a rule that already exists. As has been mentioned previously, I chair the all-party parliamentary group on music. Earlier in the year, we held a dinner with representatives from the industry and services such as Spotify and Apple Music. The intention of the dinner was better to understand the growing music-streaming market and what measures are needed to help it flourish further for the benefit of creators, fans and those services. I was taken by the agreement across the room about the existence of a value gap between rights holders and some digital services, and the need to ensure fairness in the way music rights are valued and negotiated.

The Government’s response to the EU’s digital platforms consultation, published at the beginning of the year, stated:

“Clarification of terms used in the Directive would, we believe, help to address these concerns.”

I hope the Minister and the Government remain committed to that view and the intention behind the new clause to clarify existing law.

[Matt Hancock]

As we have debated, the Bill sends a clear message about copyright infringement, not least because we are increasing the penalty for online copyright infringement from two to 10 years. Of course, I know about the concern in the music industry and elsewhere that online intermediaries need to do more to share revenues fairly with creators. That is what this new clause seeks to tackle, and I agree with that concern.

The hon. Member for Cardiff West mentioned the interaction of the Bill with EU law. The change proposed by the new clause is already the position in European Court of Justice case law, and we support that position in the UK. That provides some clarification to the existing position.

Let me answer the specific questions. First, we are heavily engaged in the digital single market negotiations and the discussions ongoing in Europe. While we are a member of the EU, we will continue to do that. The issue of the value gap, which the hon. Gentleman mentioned, is important, and the development of ECJ case law in that direction has been helpful.

That brings me to Brexit because, as the e-commerce directive is EU single-market legislation, we will have to consider what the best future system will be as we exit the European Union. We will have to consider how the e-commerce regulations as a whole should work in the future. That will be part of the debate about leaving the European Union. For the time being, ECJ case law supports the intentions in the new clause, and I would be wary about making piecemeal changes to the regime. I acknowledge the need, through the Brexit negotiations and the process of setting domestic law where there is currently European law, to take into account the important considerations that have been raised.

Digital Economy Bill (Eighth sitting)

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Committee Debate: 8th sitting: House of Commons
Tuesday 25th October 2016 Public Bill Committees

[Nigel Adams]

Will the Minister give some indication of the potential timescale of the IPO’s technical consultation?

[Matt Hancock]

It is a four-week consultation and it started yesterday, so it has three weeks and six days to run, if my maths are right.

Digital Economy Bill (Seventh sitting)

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Committee Debate: 7th sitting: House of Commons
Tuesday 25th October 2016 Public Bill Committees

[Matt Hancock]

First, that was an extremely good and unusually succinct description of the clause. The hon. Gentleman asked about costs; we think that it will reduce costs to business. In terms of the current problems, physically changing the required registration details on products imposes a cost. For instance, some businesses produce labels that must be applied to every single product. Such costs are unnecessary if a single label or web address can be built into the design and the update can then be done digitally rather than physically. It is, after all, illegal to claim that a product is registered when it is not. Therefore, the changes are required by law, and it is far cheaper for everybody if they are made on a website that is referenced on the physical product, rather than on labels, or sometimes labels stuck over labels. I am glad that there is cross-party understanding of and agreement on the clause, and I commend it to the Committee.

Question put and agreed to.

Clause 27 accordingly ordered to stand part of the Bill.

Clause 28

Copyright etc where broadcast retransmitted by cable

[Nigel Adams]

I beg to move amendment 63, in clause 28, page 27, line 31, leave out subsections (3) to (5).

This amendment, together with Amendment 64, are probing amendments to identify a timeframe for the repeal of section 73 of the Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988 as it is not clear when the repeal will come into force. The amendments would mean that repeal of section 73 of the CPDA would come into force as soon as the Bill receives Royal Assent.

Digital Economy Bill (Fourth sitting)

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Committee Debate: 4th sitting: House of Commons
Tuesday 18th October 2016 Public Bill Committees

[Nigel Adams (Selby and Ainsty) (Con)]

Before I make a brief remark, I draw the Committee’s attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests.

I fully support the spirit of the amendments and new clause, but I am not entirely sure whether the Committee should support it. Surely it is the Culture, Media and Sport Committee’s job to hold BDUK and the Department to account for their progress. I told you I would be brief, Mr Streeter.

[Matt Hancock]

We have had support of spirit throughout this sitting. The amendments and the new clause are all about reviews of and reports on progress. I have reviewed my broadband this weekend, and I can report that while I was looking at myself discussing the importance of broadband in East Anglia on a local TV programme, I was actually under my desk because my broadband went down. I know how frustrating it is when one’s broadband goes wrong. I am very grateful to the BT engineers who are working to fix it right now. That is my report.

The best comment was made by my hon. Friend the Member for Selby and Ainsty about the Select Committee. Reports and reviews are important, but the Select Committee is there to ensure that Parliament has its say. More than that, as Ofcom carries out its consultations, it will of course report on progress.

I wish to pick up on a few of the comments that were made. The hon. Member for City of Chester, which is a great city and the city of my birth—the Bill is all about connectivity and we have been making all sorts of connections in this sitting—made the argument very strongly for the importance of not only getting better connectivity, but describing it right. I will have no truck with people who say they are providing a fibre solution when, in fact, it is a part-fibre solution. Fibre-to-the-cabinet is not fibre and anybody who says so is taking people for fools. We should talk about fibre when we mean a full fibre connection that goes all the way from the fibre backbone into the premises. Anything short of that is merely part-fibre.

That point demonstrated some of the confusion from Opposition Front Benchers and shows why it is so important to get these things right, instead of just calling for a report when that is already going to happen. The hon. Member for Sheffield, Heeley called for use of G.fast, which is an important interim technology. However, she then said, “and therefore, it is important we have more fibre.” G.fast is not a fibre technology; it is a copper-based technology. While it is important and useful interim technology that will undoubtedly increase speeds, it is not full fibre.

Digital Economy Bill (First sitting)

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Committee Debate: 1st sitting: House of Commons
Tuesday 11th October 2016 Public Bill Committees

[Matt Hancock]

Q I was seeking clarification on whether you are looking for something more than is in the Bill. You were saying that that is what is in the Bill and it is right that that goes through.

James Legge: Not at this stage.

[Nigel Adams]

Q I suspect that the Bill is not going to be subject to the most detailed discussion around the country. However, as a question to both of you, having had an opportunity to analyse the Bill, if we were all pitching this to our constituents across the country, what do you see as the key benefits for consumers?

Pete Moorey: The telecoms sector needs to catch up with where consumers are. That is part of what the Bill is trying to do: we need to recognise that people increasingly see their mobile phones and broadband as essential items. Yet we know that customer satisfaction is very low and that people are increasingly frustrated about their inability to get a signal or to get the broadband speed they are paying for.

There are critical things in the Bill that will start to bring the telecoms sector kicking and screaming into the 21st century. For me, those elements include switching—I think it is incredible that we do not have provider-led switching in the telecoms sector. Automatic compensation is very important. With water, electricity and gas, if we lose a connection we get a compensation payment, but that is not the case in telecoms. The appeals process, which we have heard a lot about this morning, has had a chilling effect on the regulator’s ability to introduce measures that would both improve competition in the sector and better protect consumers.

The final area, for us, is nuisance calls, which we know are some of the biggest bugbears that people face—they are sick to death with receiving annoying calls and texts. To put the ICO guidance on nuisance calls into statute is another step towards tackling that everyday menace.

James Legge: Yes, I think that switching and compensation are important: it is important to hold the feet of the telecoms companies to the fire. But there is possibly an opportunity in the legislation to empower the consumer. At the moment, we have a sort of opaqueness around data and provision. We do not have address-level data. If I want to decide where I am going to get my mobile or broadband from, I cannot just put in my address and find out that the company that provides the best service is x. I have to sign up to someone. Then I can test the level of my service through their internet connection as a customer.

If there was more transparency, and if people had the information to hand, they would be able to make better choices. The market would also be more competitive for mobile or broadband providers, because if they do not provide the coverage, they will lose customers. It is no good waiting for someone to sign up and then find out that switching is jolly difficult, so customers say, “Well, I’ll just put up with this and complain”. We do that terribly well.

We should be able to say, “No, sorry. You didn’t tell me this. I didn’t have the data. Your service is appalling. I’m switching, and it is easy.” The level of switching at the moment is extremely low. A previous witness suggested that there was general contentment, which is not my experience.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Wednesday 27th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[Nigel Adams (Selby and Ainsty) (Con)]

T8. Will the Minister tell the House what plans the Government have to further reduce their property portfolio?

[Matthew Hancock]

We have been making significant savings in Government property, and the estate is already 20% smaller than it was in 2010. We have saved over £750 million in running costs, but there is much more to do. We have far more work to do to make sure that we are as efficient as possible in the use of property, and I look forward to leading that work.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Monday 16th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[Nigel Adams (Selby and Ainsty) (Con)]

The rise in the number of apprenticeships in my constituency has contributed to a 52% fall in youth unemployment since the last election. Will the Minister join me in congratulating local employers who are taking those youngsters on, and colleges such as Selby college and York college whose work in that area is doing so much to provide life chances and career prospects for those young people?

[The Minister for Skills and Enterprise (Matthew Hancock)]

The increase in apprenticeships across the country is helping to tackle youth unemployment. There has been a sharp fall in youth unemployment in many parts of the country—including that of my hon. Friend— with a fall of more than 50% over the past year, which is seriously good news. There are many contributory factors to that, not least colleges that work extremely hard to ensure that young people get jobs, as well as employers who create that prosperity, thanks to our long-term economic plan.

Apprenticeships

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Thursday 14th March 2013 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

I stress that as much as I possibly can, and the hon. Lady is well placed to make the case too.

[Nigel Adams (Selby and Ainsty) (Con)]

In my constituency, more than 1,000 apprentices made a start in the past full year. Could we use this opportunity to thank the providers, colleges and employers that have made such a brilliant effort to give young people a great start in life?

[Matthew Hancock]

National apprenticeship week is all about celebrating exactly the sort of people my hon. Friend mentions.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Nigel Adams

Thursday 3rd February 2011 Commons Chamber

[Nigel Adams (Selby and Ainsty) (Con)]

2. What steps she is taking to reduce fish discards; and if she will make a statement.

[Matthew Hancock (West Suffolk) (Con)]

3. What steps she is taking to reduce fish discards; and if she will make a statement.