Asked by: Steve Double (Conservative - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the maritime industry on that industry's role in supporting the Government's targets for increasing offshore wind production.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
On 6 October, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced the Government is increasing its 2030 offshore wind ambition from 30GW to 40GW, including a new ambition of 1GW of floating offshore wind and that £160 million will be made available to upgrade ports and infrastructure.
This increase in offshore wind capacity over the next decade will ensure the UK remains the biggest market in the world and represents an opportunity for companies across the UK, including those in the maritime sector.
The Department has regular engagement with the maritime sector.
Asked by: Steve Double (Conservative - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether her Department has a single individual who is responsible for leading her Department's application of the Family Test.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
Each department has a Family Test lead who is part of our Family Test Network. This Network is the central forum through which we have sought input and comments on the support departments need to help with Family Test implementation.
This includes Network members feeding into improvements to the existing guidance for officials in all departments on Family Test implementation.
Asked by: Steve Double (Conservative - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans she has to encourage greater uptake of rooftop solar PV.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
Low carbon electricity, including solar – whether at the household level or the national level – is central to the transition to the smart and flexible energy systems of the future.
Since 2010, we have quadrupled the electricity we generate from renewables – installing 99% of the UK’s solar capacity and over 800,000 installations – exceeding our historic projections on solar PV deployment. We now have over 13.3GW of solar capacity installed in the UK, which is enough to power over 3 million UK homes.
The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG), which came into force on 1 January 2020, gives small scale low-carbon electricity generators, such as homes with solar panels, the right to be paid for the renewable electricity they export to the grid. Renewable generators now have a several competitive SEG tariffs to choose from, in some cases even higher than the FIT export tariff.
Permitted development rights have been introduced allowing the installation of solar panels up to 1 megawatt on domestic properties, schools, businesses and farm buildings without any need for planning permission.
Asked by: Steve Double (Conservative - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what her policy is on the extent of deployment of solar PV in 2020; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
We are now exceeding our historic projections on solar PV deployment. In 2013 we estimated that solar capacity would reach between 10 and 12GW by 2020, however latest figures indicate we now have more than 13.3GW of solar PV capacity installed in the UK - enough to power over 3 million UK homes.
The prospects of subsidy-free solar PV are becoming increasingly realistic for developers; several solar PV sites have already deployed, and we expect to see more.
Asked by: Steve Double (Conservative - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of the heat strategy on the (a) upfront costs of installing new technologies and (b) the costs of energy efficiency upgrades for rural (i) homeowners, (ii) landlords and (iii) businesses.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
I have committed to publishing a Heat Policy Roadmap in 2020 which will set out the programme of work required to enable key strategic decisions in the first part of the 2020s over the future of low-carbon heating. BEIS officials will be working closely with stakeholders, and will be considering the impacts of different technologies on different segments of the market as they develop its content.
Asked by: Steve Double (Conservative - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Government’s heat strategy will include proposals to remove the fuel cost element of the Energy Performance Certificate for rural (i) homeowners and (ii) landlords living off the gas grid.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
I have committed to publishing a Heat Policy Roadmap in 2020 which will set out the programme of work required to enable key strategic decisions in the first part of the 2020s over the future of low-carbon heating. BEIS officials will be working closely with stakeholders as they develop its content.
Following a commitment in the Clean Growth Strategy, we launched a Call for Evidence on Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs), which closed in October 2018 with 229 responses which we are currently analysing. In the Call for Evidence we asked for views on the current EPC cost rating and the results will inform our views on future EPC policy.