Oral Answers to Questions

Nadia Whittome Excerpts

Tuesday 21st May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Bowie]

As the hon. Gentleman knows, I am keen to ensure that every part of our great United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland benefits from the expansion of nuclear power and the benefits that it can bring, not only for meeting our net zero objectives but for the economies in which these small modular reactors will be built. I would be happy to meet him at any time to explore what benefits can be accrued in Northern Ireland from the expansion of our nuclear capacity here in the UK.

[Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East) (Lab)]

13. What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the High Court judgment of 3 May 2024 relating to the Government’s carbon budget delivery plan.

[The Minister for Energy Security and Net Zero (Justin Tomlinson)]

The Government are immensely proud of our record on climate change. We have cut emissions faster than any other G20 country over the last decade. The judgment contains no criticism of our detailed plans or the policies themselves, which will keep the UK on track to meet net zero by 2050.

[Nadia Whittome]

The Government have a legal and moral duty to meet our carbon emissions target. Failure to do so would consign my generation, and generations after mine, to a future of climate catastrophe, so it is beyond a joke that the Government’s carbon budget delivery plan has now been ruled unlawful, not just once but twice. When will the Minister tell the flat earthers sitting behind him to stop trying to make net zero a culture war issue, and instead deliver a transition that both meets our climate obligations and improves people’s living standards?

[Justin Tomlinson]

Our carbon budget delivery plan has over 300 detailed policies. We are recognised as a leader internationally, having already cut emissions by half—the first major economy to do so—with a further ambitious target to get to 68% by 2030, compared with just 55% for the shadow Secretary of State’s beloved EU.

Oral Answers to Questions

Nadia Whittome Excerpts

Tuesday 16th April 2024 Commons Chamber

[Claire Coutinho]

I thank the hon. Lady, but that is an extraordinary question. There would be much more credibility from the Labour party if it would recognise that the UK is the first country in the G20—the 20 largest economies—to halve emissions. While Labour Members might play politics with this issue, I am absolutely happy to defend our position on dealing with our climate change obligations in a pragmatic way that protects household finances.

[Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East) (Lab)]

13. Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of public ownership of the energy system.

[The Minister for Energy Security and Net Zero (Justin Tomlinson)]

Properly regulated markets, which incentivise private capital to invest in the energy system, provide the best outcome for consumers and promote market competition as the best driver of efficiency, innovation and value.

[Nadia Whittome]

Despite the Minister’s disagreement, public ownership exists in our energy system. For example, 45% of our offshore wind assets are publicly owned, just not by the UK—they belong to the state-owned companies of countries such as Denmark and Norway. Publicly owned energy companies can accelerate the transition to clean energy while creating jobs, reducing bills and ensuring that the public benefit directly from our common resources. Countries that are leading the transition to renewables have realised this; when will the Minister?

[Justin Tomlinson]

I thank the hon. Member. It is flattering: I am 48 hours into my role, and she would like to upgrade it so that I can personally be in charge of delivering energy companies. I gently remind her that in her own local authority of Nottingham City Council, Robin Hood Energy, which was chaired by a politician—the public probably want fewer, not more, of us—managed to cost taxpayers a staggering £38 million.

Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill

Nadia Whittome Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 22nd January 2024 Commons Chamber

[Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East) (Lab)]

Just last month, COP28 made history by acknowledging for the first time the need to transition away from fossil fuels. It should not have taken 28 COPs to accept what scientists have known for decades. Despite all the vested interests at play, the efforts of hundreds of lobbyists, and the huge sums poured into preventing climate action, the truth became impossible to ignore. The effects of climate chaos are now in plain sight: 10 of the hottest years on record, as mentioned previously in this debate, all happened in the past decade, and the speed of change is only increasing. To avert catastrophe, we must work now towards a fossil-free future.

Why do our Government insist on keeping us in the past and trying to build our recovery on a resource that the world has formally committed to moving away from? The Government claim that it is about lowering household bills, but even the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero has admitted that it will not do that. The energy generated from new oil and gas would not belong to the British people, powering our homes for cheap, it would be in the hands of private companies and sold on the global market for internationally set prices. It would be owned by those same energy companies that have already made record-breaking profits in the cost of living crisis, while 13 million households sat in the cold last winter, too scared to turn on the heating.

Madam Deputy Speaker, those corporations do not need any more state handouts. If the Government really cared about energy bills, they would be funding a mass programme of insulating homes, which the Tories slashed support for in 2013. If they cared about securing our future, they would be focusing on investing in publicly owned home-grown renewables, which have never been cheaper. They would be delivering a green new deal to protect our living standards and our planet for decades to come. Therefore, if not to lower our bills now, to ensure energy security in the future, and to enable a green transition, why are the Government pushing through this dangerous and unpopular Bill? Is it just to annoy environmentalists and turn climate policies into a wedge issue? Or could it have anything to do with the fact that the Conservatives have taken £3.5 million in a year from big polluters, climate deniers and fossil fuel interests?

Madam Deputy Speaker, when justifying this act of climate vandalism, the Government like to reference the Climate Change Committee. Unfortunately, though, they have misrepresented the advice of that Committee to the point that its chair, Piers Forster, has been forced to speak out. In response to the Government’s false claims, he said:

“UK oil and gas consumption needs to fall by over 80% to meet UK targets. This and the COP… decision…makes further licensing inconsistent with climate goals.”

It is not only embarrassing, but deeply concerning that, on an issue as important as the future of our planet, the Government are either unable or unwilling to understand expert advice. It is not just the Climate Change Committee that has warned against new fossil fuels, so, too, has the UN Secretary-General. [Interruption.] Conservative Members would do well to listen to this. He called on all nations to

“cease all licensing or funding of new oil and gas.”

In addition, the International Institute for Sustainable Development has said that “no new oil and gas development is possible if the world is to stay within the Paris agreement temperature limit.”

The director of the International Energy Agency said:

“If Governments are serious about the climate crisis, there can be no new investment in oil, gas and coal”.

Moreover, more than 700 scientists wrote to the Prime Minister last year, asking him to halt the licensing.

Should we be taking advice from hundreds of leading climate experts or from lobbyists for fossil fuel industries? The Bill in front of us will not solve any of our problems. It will just contribute to wrecking the planet and undermine our climate creditability on the international stage. For the sake of our futures and our planet, I urge the House to vote down this dangerous Bill.

Making Britain a Clean Energy Superpower

Nadia Whittome Excerpts

Thursday 9th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Claire Coutinho]

The hon. Lady is right to raise skills, people and planning. We have been looking at ways to speed all of that up and will be setting out more details by the end of the year.

The King’s Speech included legislation for awarding oil and gas licences each year, giving industry the certainty it needs to invest in jobs here in the UK.

[Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East) (Lab)]

Will the Secretary of State give way?

[Claire Coutinho]

I will make some progress.

Oil and gas is an industry that supports 200,000 jobs and is expected to provide £50 billion of tax revenue in the next five years. That is the people and the money that the Labour party would send abroad, because it is not against oil and gas jobs, just against British oil and gas jobs—and for what? To increase our reliance on imports from foreign regimes with higher emissions and to send away billions of pounds of investment in carbon capture and hydrogen schemes. Opposition Members support those technologies but would rather the taxpayer footed the bill for them.

With our ambitions on net zero and for our energy security, it is critical that we make the most of our own home-grown advantages, but Labour and the SNP’s policy means jobs abroad, investment lost and energy security sabotaged. You do not have to take my word for it, Madam Deputy Speaker—the unions are sounding the alarm. It has been said that Labour “does not… understand energy”, is self-harming and “naive”, and that its policies would leave our oil and gas communities decimated, turning our oil and gas workers into the “coalminers of our generation”. Those are not my words but those of the GMB and Unite. We want to keep jobs and manufacturing here, but Labour has not understood that we needs natural gas supplies. Those are the words of industry. The important truth is that we know we need to transition to clean energy, but it is the same people, communities and expertise that will unlock the green transition. The skills of those working on oil and gas rigs today are the same skills that we will need for the offshore wind jobs of tomorrow.

--- Later in debate ---

[Nadia Whittome]

A moment ago the Secretary of State quoted the Climate Change Committee, which also said that expanding fossil fuel production is not in line with net zero. By the Secretary of State’s own admission on Monday, not a single Bill in the King’s Speech will help families struggling with energy bills. How can the Government justify turbocharging new oil and gas, when that does nothing for the cost of living crisis and blows a hole in our climate ambitions?

[Claire Coutinho]

I am afraid the hon. Lady is quite mistaken. The Climate Change Committee’s own data shows that when we reach net zero in 2050, oil and gas will account for about 25% of our energy mix. That is why it is important to ensure that if we need it, it comes from here.

There are two futures here. One is the future I have just described, where we cut our emissions faster than any other major economy in the world; we drive hundreds of billions of pounds of private investment in wind, nuclear and hydrogen; we support UK industry with carbon capture; we create a world-class export opportunity in our continental shelf; we secure nearly half a million jobs, with our young people renowned globally for their expertise; we bring supply chains and manufacturing capability to our industry heartlands such as the Humber and Teesside; our coastal communities are renewed; and we protect our energy security and support families and businesses with the cost of energy. That is the future for Britain as a clean energy superpower.

There is another future: a bleak world. Imagine it is a grey day; the last private investor has just pulled out of the North sea. Those communities without the jobs to support them have disbanded. The right hon. Member for Doncaster North is explaining yet again why the Labour party has laden the country with debt. His mothballing of British oil and gas is seen as the worst handling of our natural resources since his old boss sold the gold. Norway, with its ongoing oil and gas licences, is forging ahead with its greener future. Meanwhile, jobs in Russia are booming. Our energy security has been jeopardised, as imports from unstable regions rise. That is the future we can expect from a party reliant on Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion for ideas. With an awful predictableness, this parallel world has once again proven the law of British politics: every single Labour Government in the past left unemployment higher.

Of course, that future is not a surprise to anyone. The right hon. Gentleman said, after all, that we should sacrifice economic growth to cut emissions. [Interruption.] He would like to borrow £28 billion in his blind ambition for 2030, no matter the cost to ordinary people. Just three days ago he said that protecting the British oil and gas industry, 200,000 jobs and £50 billion of tax revenue was a stunt. But it is not a stunt to want to keep jobs in the UK, it is not a stunt to want to protect billions of pounds of taxes and investment in this country, and it is certainly not a stunt to prioritise domestic security over the threat of dictators such as Putin.

The British people have rejected the right hon. Gentleman’s arguments before, and they will do so again. I am sure that he will today mention Great British Energy, a new Labour entity about which we know only one thing for sure: it will be run badly, funded by the shadow Chancellor who, when she is not borrowing other people’s words, is recklessly borrowing to fund Labour’s policy and leaving the British people to pick up the bill.

What will GB Energy really look like? Will it be like Labour Nottingham Council’s version, Robin Hood Energy, which collapsed in 2020 leaving local taxpayers with £38 million of debt? Will it be like Labour-run Bristol’s version, Bristol Energy, which also collapsed, leaving local people with losses of £43 million? Or will it be like Labour’s 50% stake in Warrington’s Together Energy—people will get the pattern by this point—which also collapsed, with a £37 million bill this time for local residents to pick up? Not content with bankrupting Birmingham and Croydon or skewering local taxpayers in Nottingham, Bristol and Warrington, Labour now wants to bankrupt Britain. One thing is for sure: when Labour is in charge of your energy you will pay the price.

Energy transitions do not happen very often and now we are on the brink of the most important one of all to reverse centuries of global warming and reach net zero and secure energy resilience by powering Britain from Britain. It is only the Conservatives who have the plans to protect this country’s energy security, to deliver the most ambitious 2030 emission cuts of any major economy, to promote jobs and investment in the UK, and to help this country stand tall on the global stage. We will do that all without forcing families to choose between protecting their family finances and protecting the planet.

--- Later in debate ---

[Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East) (Lab)]

I am sorry to put a downer on the debate, but frankly the King’s Speech shows that the party in Government is completely out of ideas.

Some 1.5 million food parcels have been given out by the Trussell Trust in the last six months, thanks to this Government’s policies. I am regularly contacted by constituents living in cold, damp homes, thanks to this Government’s policies. NHS waiting lists are the longest on record, thanks to this Government’s policies. And in the midst of this crisis, what is the Government’s response? The Conservative party is more worried about preventing key workers from exercising their right to strike and cracking down on pedicabs in London than cleaning up the mess it has made of the country after 13 years in Government.

Not only are the Government failing to tackle the biggest challenge of our future, but they are intent on escalating it. Already catastrophic flooding turns millions of lives upside down every year, including thousands in the UK, while droughts are affecting food production, causing prices to soar. The climate crisis will only make that worse. The science is clear: without decisive action, our future is under threat. But as we have seen throughout the course of today’s debate, this Conservative Government are in thrall to fossil fuel companies and are attempting to turn the race to net zero into a culture war. There is no other explanation for their decision to water down climate policies and turbocharge new oil and gas, announcing legislation for a new annual system for awarding drilling licenses.

We must not be fooled: it is working-class people who will suffer the greatest consequences if we fail to lower our emissions. The climate crisis and cost of living crisis are two sides of the same coin, and there are solutions that can tackle both at the same time. A just transition is possible if the super-rich and polluters are made to pay their fair share. We should see the sprint to net zero as an opportunity to redistribute wealth and power in our communities.

Public ownership is an important way of doing that, and it is popular too. Recent polling shows that 65% of people support public ownership of energy, so I am pleased that a Labour Government are committed to setting up a new publicly owned energy company that will create jobs and help us to reach 100% clean energy by 2030. A Labour Government would also insulate 90 million homes, cutting bills and emissions at the same time. I am thrilled, too, that our party is serious about preparing young people for their future, with teaching about the climate and sustainability throughout the curriculum in schools and colleges across the country.

This was not the King’s Speech that our country deserved. My constituents deserve action on the climate, the cost of living, and decent jobs. This Government have shown that they will not deliver on any of them. Perhaps in her winding-up speech, the Minister can tell us when the Prime Minister will be putting the country out of its misery and calling a general election.

Energy Bill [Lords]

Nadia Whittome Excerpts

Report stage
Tuesday 5th September 2023 Commons Chamber

[George Eustice (Camborne and Redruth) (Con)]

I support Government new clause 63 and welcome their bringing it forward. I had tabled amendment 8 and new clauses 40 and 50, each of which in different ways sought to give the Government the powers they needed to extend the existing renewable transport fuel obligation so that it might cover domestic heating fuels for off-grid properties. Government new clause 63 achieves that, creating the same power by replicating section 124 of the Energy Act 2004, and therefore I will not press my amendment or new clauses to a Division. I thank the Minister for the work he has put in on this; we have discussed it many times and I know he has worked hard to get a cross-Government consensus.

I also welcome the Minister’s commitment to a consultation. Some Members have questioned the timing of it, but we all have to be realistic about how long these things can take and the fact that a consultation needs to be done properly, and we should therefore accept in good faith the undertaking he has given at the Dispatch Box today. So I support that.

I want to address a point raised earlier by the hon. Member for North Antrim (Ian Paisley) and reassure him that I did not hang him out to dry. I am very conscious of the fact that Northern Ireland has 400,000 homes that are off the gas grid, and when discussing the Government new clause proposal last week, I highlighted the fact that Northern Ireland was a special case. The Minister has given an undertaking that conversations are continuing with officials in Northern Ireland, and I hope we can find a resolution to that issue.

My final point is not really a matter for today’s Bill: the associated issue of the proposed ban on replacement boilers for off-grid homes currently proposed for 2026. I know that the Government will be looking at that—it is a consequential consideration following an amendment they have put forward today—and I look forward to hearing what Ministers will have to say about it in due course.

[Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East) (Lab)]

I rise to speak in support of new clause 35. My amendment is about funding for decarbonising homes and I hope Members across the House will agree that it is badly needed. Our homes are among the least energy-efficient in Europe and heating them accounts for 14% of all UK carbon emissions. If we do not retrofit around 29 million existing homes in the UK we will not be able to reach net zero by 2050. This is a mammoth task, so we must act now.

However, decarbonising housing is not just about tackling the climate crisis: millions of people are living in freezing homes that are expensive to heat, left at the mercy of the volatile gas market. Poor-quality housing is costing people their health and even their lives. Retrofitting homes would reduce bills, make homes safer and improve people’s quality of life. It would also create new jobs in every part of the country, helping build the green economy we so desperately need.

The Climate Change Committee has found that people accept the need to make changes to their homes, but they need well-designed policies to help them to act. The biggest barrier for many will be the up-front cost. The Government have funding to retrofit the homes of people on low incomes, and that is available through the social housing decarbonisation fund and the sustainable warmth fund, but the amount on offer just is not enough, particularly given the rising labour and material costs. In fact, last year, the number of Government-funded energy efficiency measures installed in UK homes dropped by half, year on year. It is now a shocking 97% below 2012 levels.

If the Government had not cut energy efficiency support in 2013, just imagine how many more people might have spent last winter in a comfortable home and how many fewer families would have had to choose between heating and eating. Short-sighted Tory cuts have cost us a decade in a fight we cannot afford to lose. We need long-term consistent funding and a clear road map of how the decarbonisation of housing will be achieved. Local authorities are uniquely placed to understand the needs of their area and to target schemes where they can provide the most benefits. In Nottingham, against the odds, more than 4,000 homes have been retrofitted by the city council in the past decade. Just imagine what more could be achieved by councils across the country with long-term predictable funding for decarbonising homes. The amendment is calling for the Government to undertake an assessment of the benefits of providing this funding to local authorities. I hope the House will invest in our future by supporting new clause 35.

[Craig Mackinlay]

I suppose that the volume of my amendments probably speaks for itself, but I have a great interest in this Bill. I am aware of the limitation of time this afternoon, so I will keep my observations to the two areas that I think are fundamentally important.

I absolutely despise this Bill. I have been in this House for eight years, and I have rarely seen a Bill of such nature. It is 426 pages, and it has attracted 146 pages of amendments. That means it has a lot of interest, but I want to discuss two of the amendments that I have tabled.

First, amendment 50 relates to clause 152(4) and the hydrogen grid conversion trials. The clause seeks to amend the Gas Act 1986, and I am particularly concerned by subsection (4), which increases the rights and powers available to unknown new inspectors. It includes the

“power to enter premises in the trial location for the purpose of inspecting anything on the premises, or carrying out any tests on the premises, in preparation for or otherwise in connection with the trial.”

My amendment, which I tabled with others, would interpose at least a magistrate—a justice of the peace—in that proposal before we start entering people’s premises. We accept that in other energy matters. For example, to have a meter changed, it has to go through a magistrates court. I know that well, as I used to sit as one.

Clause 248 causes me the most gross concern. It is the reason that I hope an amendment can be accepted, although I know it was not selected by Mr Speaker. The clause is titled “Sanctions”, and I suppose it does what it says on the tin. Subsection (4) states: “Energy performance regulations”—which are unknown and may be put into place in this House in the future by statutory instrument—

“may provide for the imposition of civil penalties by enforcement authorities”

for a penalty of up to £15,000 for not complying with those regulations. Were that not bad enough, all in this House should sit up and take notice of subsection (3) —I know it is a big Bill. It states that energy performance regulations, which are as yet unknown, but are available to be put on the statute book in the future by statutory instrument,

“may provide for the creation of criminal offences”

in relation to various cases, with imprisonment for a term of up to 12 months.

I do not know about other Members in the House, but I rather like “The Shawshank Redemption”. It is a great film. I can imagine the old lags in the future having a chat about why they are in prison. One might say, “I’ve done benefit fraud—£50,000-worth—and I got six months.” Another might say, “I had dangerous driving causing an injury—8 months.” The businessman talking to them will say, “I had a very good business with 20 people working for me in a factory. They have all been put out of work. My business has closed and my family are on the street.” The others will say, “What on earth did you do, sir?” and he will say, “I infringed an energy performance certificate, and I got 12 months.”