Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department have taken to increase solar capacity to 70GW by 2035.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government incentivises large-scale solar through the Contracts for Difference scheme. Last month, the Government awarded contracts to 56 solar projects, totalling 1.9 gigawatts of capacity, in the fifth, and first annual, allocation round
Rooftop solar is encouraged through various financial and regulatory measures. These include the Smart Export Guarantee, removal of VAT on domestic panels, tax relief, and business rate exemptions. The Government is reviewing permitted development rights to simplify planning for commercial solar projects.
The Government has established the Solar Taskforce to drive forward actions needed to achieve the Government's ambition of more than quadrupling solar capacity by 2035.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing targeted financial support to terminally ill people to cover the cost of powering medical devices in the home.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As set out in the autumn statement, we are exploring the best approach to consumer protection, as part of wider retail market reforms. The government continues to monitor the situation and will keep options under review, including with respect to the most vulnerable households.
In response to higher prices, we have put in place the Energy Price Guarantee and provided significant help to those who need it most through this winter and into 2023-24, including an additional Cost of Living Payment of £900 paid across three instalments and payments through the Warm Home Discount and Winter Fuel Payments.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has taken steps to support people with further increases in the standing charges for energy bills.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The energy price cap sets a limit on unit rates and standing charges, ensuring that millions of households pay a fair price for their energy. The standing charge reflects the on-going costs that fall on a supplier to provide and maintain a live supply to a customer’s premises.
In the meantime, the Energy Price Guarantee has been extended for an additional 3 months at its current level from April 2023 to the end of June 2023. This brings a typical household energy bill in Great Britain down to around £2,500 per year.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent progress his Department has made on providing itinerant liveaboard boaters with Alternative Fuel Payment support.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government is keen to support these households and to ensure that they can receive the Alternative Fuel Payment via the Alternative Fund where eligible. The Government is currently working to find an acceptable method for these households to provide proof of eligibility, whilst protecting public funds, so they can claim the Alternative Fuel Payment Alternative Fund support.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent progress his Department has made on providing Gypsy and Traveller communities living on permanent Gypsy and Traveller sites with Alternative Fuel Payment support.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government is keen to support these households and to ensure that they can receive the Alternative Fuel Payment via the Alternative Fund where eligible. The Government is currently working to find an acceptable method for these households to provide proof of eligibility, whilst protecting public funds, so they can claim the AFP AF support.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to incentivise new wave and tidal energy projects.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Wave and tidal energy projects are eligible to apply for the Contracts for Difference scheme. Allocation Round 5 opened on 30 March 2023. The budget available for emerging technologies is £35m, inclusive of a £10m ringfenced minimum for Tidal Stream.
In addition, the Government supports the development of new wave and tidal energy in the UK through a suite of research funding programmes.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of ending the free allocation of UK Emissions Trading Scheme permits for oil and gas companies.
Answered by Graham Stuart
UK ETS industrial participants, such as those in oil and gas sectors, are provided with free allocations reducing their exposure to the carbon price and mitigating the risk of carbon leakage. The UK ETS Authority is in the process of reviewing the free allocation policy and consulted last year on elements of this. The Government will publish the response in due course.
The Government will also be consulting later this year on potential changes to the methodology for distributing free allocations and ways to target those most at risk of carbon leakage.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on investment in (a) home insulation and (b) heat pumps in order to improve energy efficiency in the context of (i) the cost-of-living crisis and (ii) achieving the UK's Net Zero targets.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government is investing £6.6 billion over this Parliament on clean heat and improving energy efficiency in buildings, including through the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, Home Upgrade Grant, and Boiler Upgrade Scheme. In addition, £6 billion of new Government funding will be made available from 2025 to 2028.
The new ECO+ scheme will be worth £1 billion and run from Spring 2023 – March 2026. The scheme will target a broader pool of households in the least efficient homes in lower council tax bands as well as the most vulnerable.
The Government considers improving the energy efficiency of homes to be the best long-term method of tackling fuel poverty.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of banning the forced installation of prepayment meters in households with someone with a disability.
Answered by Graham Stuart
All suppliers have agreed to cease the forced installation of prepayment meters and the remote switching of smart meters to prepayment mode up to 31 March 2023.
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State has written to Ofgem to ask that it does more to ensure suppliers protect vulnerable consumers and that they revise their practices and make sure PPMs are being installed as a genuine last resort. Ofgem has also called for evidence on identification of vulnerabilities, PPM Safe and Reasonably Practicable rules and guidance, and processes in place for installing or switching customers to PPMs by 7 March.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that energy standing charges do not increase.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The standing charge is a fixed charge that suppliers pass on to their customers to cover the cost of providing a live supply and decisions about standing charges are a commercial matter for energy suppliers subject to the maximum permitted under the price cap. One component of the standing charge cost relates to transmission and distribution charges, which have increased due to the Supplier of Last Resort (SoLR) levy. The Government, together with Ofgem, is looking at reforms to ensure the energy market is more resilient.