"I was going to come to the trading of statistics later in my speech, but let me do it now, because there is a fundamental point around the disingenuous trading of statistics on land use. My hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Tom Hayes) made a valiant effort at …..." Michael Shanks - View Speech
"It is a pleasure to speak in this debate. I congratulate the hon. and gallant Member for Spelthorne (Lincoln Jopp) on securing it, particularly because I unfortunately missed his Adjournment debate, which I heard was one of the most enthusiastic Adjournment debates we have ever had on this topic. I …..." Michael Shanks - View Speech
"I will not be drawn on golf course membership, because I do not know how many of my constituents are members of golf courses; I can imagine how many Conservative Members are.
I come back to the point about land use, because we absolutely recognise the importance of having a …..." Michael Shanks - View Speech
"I am not going to give way to the hon. Lady again because I want to come to floating solar, which the hon. and gallant Member for Spelthorne eloquently made the case for. I completely agree that it is a hugely exciting technology that we should be expanding, and I …..." Michael Shanks - View Speech
"I will not be able to go into the detail of everyone’s points, but the hon. Member is wrong about the land use framework. Perhaps he should read it again, because it details quite clearly the different land uses across the country. There is always tension about land use—of course …..." Michael Shanks - View Speech
"Today I am setting out the Government’s position on the supply of offshore wind turbines from MingYang, a Chinese turbine supplier. This has followed offshore wind developers seeking the Government view on the use of MingYang smart energy turbines in British waters and in our energy system.
"We are taking a strategic approach to planning grid capacity and halving transmission build times through reforms to consenting, regulation and supply chains. We are working with the National Energy System Operator and Ofgem to deliver on radical connections reform, prioritising those projects that are ready to connect and strategically …..." Michael Shanks - View Speech
"Methane harvested from landfill sites enables the generation of around 2.5 TWh a year, which is around 1% of the UK’s electricity. Many of those assets receive a subsidy through the renewables obligation, which expires in 2027. That generation has a supportive, but limited, effect on energy security. Given the …..." Michael Shanks - View Speech
"I reiterate that although methane harvested from such sites and used to generate electricity plays a role in electricity generation, it is less than 1% overall, so it is not an issue for our energy security. As the sites age, the amount of methane they omit reduces, and that reduction …..." Michael Shanks - View Speech