Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent steps he has taken to support the long-term energy needs of hospitality businesses in Meriden constituency.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Businesses, including the Hospitality sector, have already benefitted from the Energy Bill Relief Scheme which ended on 31 March and provided £7.4 billion of support. Eligible businesses will continue to get a discount on gas and electricity bills under the Energy Bills Discount Scheme (EBDS) from 1 April 2023 until 31 March 2024.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
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 implications for his Department's policies of the adequacy of levels of flexibility in the ways businesses can change energy contracts between providers in (a) Meriden constituency and (b) England; and what recent discussions he has had with energy providers on steps being taken to increase that flexibility.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government does not hold data on energy contracts for businesses, and contract negotiations are a commercial matter for suppliers and their customers.
I met with Ofgem and energy suppliers in March to urge suppliers to do all they can to support their customers and will continue to press them on this matter. I also wrote to suppliers in May to stress the importance of good customer service outcomes and for suppliers to reach out to their customers to discuss options as soon as possible. The Government will continue to work closely with Ofgem and suppliers to ensure that dialogue is taking place between businesses and their energy supplier.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent discussions his Department has had with energy providers on steps being taken increase flexibility for small businesses to cancel energy contracts.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government understand some businesses on fixed tariffs have seen their bills rise significantly. As this is a commercial matter, the Government encourage businesses to raise this with their suppliers directly, but both Ministers and Ofgem have been pressing suppliers to ensure they are doing all they can to support their customers. The Government cannot mandate suppliers re-negotiate contracts but do expect they will engage directly with customers to find solutions wherever possible. Minister Solloway wrote to energy suppliers in May stressing the importance of good customer service outcomes and reaching out to customers to discuss options early.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how much from the public purse the Government has invested in the UK energy industry since 2010; and if he will make a comparative assessment of that level of funding against spending in (a) the US and (b) other international counterparts over the same time period.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The UK has seen nearly £200 billion of public and private investment into low carbon energy sectors between 2010 and 2022. This is 50% higher than the US as a share of GDP. A comparison with other G7 countries is set out in Figure 2 of Powering Up Britain: The Net Zero Growth Plan. A split between public and private sources of investment is not available from the data.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent estimate he has made of the potential economic value of carbon capture, utilisation and storage.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) sector could support up to 50,000 jobs in the UK in 2030, and there could be a potential £4-5bn in Gross Value Added from UK CCUS exports by 2050.
The UK has 78 gigatonnes of theoretical potential storage capacity, with potential value being generated by storing other countries' CO2. An Emissions Trading Scheme price of £60/tonne, utilising the full potential storage capacity, could result in avoided emissions of around £5trillion. The size of the opportunity will depend on factors such as costs of capturing, transporting and storing CO2, the prevailing carbon price and volume of CO2 being stored.