Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the collaborative group to address non-technical barriers to workers moving between sectors, committed to in the North Sea future plan, has been established; who its members are; and how many times it has met.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Office for Clean Energy Jobs is working actively with the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board through a formal joint work plan to support workers moving from oil and gas into clean energy sectors. This includes expanding access to relevant training and cross-skilling pathways, helping workers build on their transferable skills and move into roles in sectors including nuclear and offshore wind.
The North Sea Jobs Service will build on this activity by providing end-to-end career transition support. It will work closely with employers to identify vacancies, match eligible workers with suitable roles and help address any skills or qualification gaps, supporting workers into secure jobs in clean energy and other Industrial Strategy priority sectors.
The North Sea Future Board continues to discuss and coordinate on skills and workforce issues in the oil and gas sector, in parallel with the Clean Energy Jobs Plan Steering Group.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to secure agreement between standards bodies on the mutual recognition of qualifications held by offshore oil and gas workers and those required in clean energy sectors; and when they expect that agreement to be reached.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government supports the industry-led Energy Skills Passport, overseen by RenewableUK and Offshore Energies UK. The Passport supports oil and gas workers to identify routes into offshore wind roles. The Government continues to support its expansion, including additional clean energy roles and career pathways. This work will continue to progress with industry, with further roles and pathways added as they are developed. The North Sea Jobs Service will support recognition of skills this by helping oil and gas workers identify how their skills and qualifications transfer to roles in priority sectors, including clean energy.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the merits of using (1) North Sea transition authority stewardship guidance, (2) contracts for difference conditions, and (3) the clean industry bonus to encourage industry standards bodies to participate in qualification recognition under the energy skills passport.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government supports the industry-led Energy Skills Passport, overseen by RenewableUK and Offshore Energies UK. The Passport supports oil and gas workers to identify routes into offshore wind roles, and Government continues to support its expansion to additional clean energy jobs and career pathways.
The Government will continue to work with industry, including through the North Sea Transition Authority where appropriate, to support wider participation in the Energy Skills Passport as it develops.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what role they have played in the governance of the Energy Skills Passport; which organisations currently sit on its governing body; how often that body has met since October 2024; whether they have considered the merits of independent public oversight of the energy skills passport by an organisation without a financial interest in training provision; and how the North Sea jobs service will be integrated with the energy skills passport to support between 5,000 and 10,000 oil and gas workers each year from 2026–27 to 2029–30 in accessing opportunities within the clean energy sector.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Skills Passport (ESP) is industry-led. Offshore Energies UK and RenewableUK jointly run the ESP on behalf of industry and manage its Steering Group. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero sits on the Steering Group as a strategic partner, alongside the Scottish Government and a range of other stakeholders including training bodies, industry employers and trade unions. The Government has supported the ESP through grant funding, advice and stakeholder engagement. The ESP will be a tool that the North Sea Jobs Service can draw upon to support oil and gas workers moving into growing industries across the Government’s industrial strategy sectors. Further information will be provided once the service is launched.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to raise the offshore workforce skills and qualification recognition at the next North Seas Energy Cooperation meeting.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government supports the industry-led Energy Skills Passport, overseen by RenewableUK and Offshore Energies UK. The Passport supports oil and gas workers to identify routes into offshore wind roles. The Government continues to support its expansion, including additional offshore and onshore wind roles and career pathways.
The North Seas Energy Cooperation is the framework for regional energy cooperation at European level in the North Seas and is therefore not the appropriate forum to raise national issues of this kind.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of water supplies for the Sizewell C nuclear facility, in light of the extension of the life of the Sizewell B nuclear facility and the increasing levels of water stress in Suffolk.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
An assessment of water supply formed part of the review of Sizewell C’s DCO application. Development consent was granted by the Secretary of State in June 2022. The company is working with water companies and other stakeholders to ensure a resilient supply of water during construction, both for the project and for local consumers.
Water use and environmental impacts at Sizewell B will remain regulated through the relevant environmental permitting regime; the ONR would not permit Sizewell B to continue operating beyond its current planned life unless it was satisfied that the station could continue to operate safely, including in relation to water supply.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that communities affected by the construction of Sizewell C are kept fully informed of the impacts of the construction and the efforts to ameliorate those impacts; and what opportunities communities have had to co-create mitigation measures.
Answered by Baroness Curran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Sizewell C Ltd is committed to listening to and working with local communities to minimise disruption caused by the project’s construction.
The company undertook extensive consultation with local communities prior to applying for a development consent order (DCO), and since commencing its DCO has established multiple community forums. The company also has a dedicated local engagement team leading a programme of engagement with local communities, and an online works tracker.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to participate in the 2027 Transitioning away from Fossil Fuels conference in Tuvalu; and what other steps they plan to take to support the conference efforts to improve access to finance for mitigation and adaptation activities for Global South nations.
Answered by Lord Whitehead
The UK is fully committed to accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels domestically and internationally and will decide on attendance at the Conference in Tuvalu in due course.
The Government is committed to improving Global South access to climate finance. As co-chair of the Taskforce on Access to Climate Finance, it supports practical solutions to unlock predictable finance. And through the Global Clean Power Alliance and Just Energy Transition Partnerships, the Government supports Global South partners to adopt clean, renewable power.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have held with the Falkland Islands regarding carbon emissions; and what programmes they are supporting and what other steps they are taking to reduce carbon emissions in the territory.
Answered by Lord Whitehead
The Inventory Agency produces the Falkland Islands’ annual greenhouse gas inventory on behalf of the UK Government and engages with the Falkland Islands Government on emissions data.
We support the ‘Improving Falkland Peatland GHG Data’ Project which seeks to improve knowledge of carbon storage and emissions from Falkland peatland habitats and assess the feasibility of future carbon offsetting to finance peatland restoration.
We support the right of the Falkland Islanders to develop their natural resources. This is an integral part of their right of self-determination.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Callanan on 15 May 2023 (HL7503), what discussions they have held with the UK Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories (CDOTS) regarding carbon emissions, including extending the UK's ratification of the Paris Agreement to include the CDOTS within the UK's 2030 Nationally Determined Contribution.
Answered by Lord Whitehead
The UK is committed to extending the Paris Agreement to all eligible Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories (CDOTs) that wish to join, bringing them into scope of the UK’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Requests for extension are made at each CDOT’s discretion.
The UK has extended its ratification of the Paris Agreement to the Overseas Territory of Gibraltar (2022) and to the Crown Dependencies of the Bailiwick of Jersey (2022), the Isle of Man (2023), and Guernsey (2023). We welcome interest from other OTs on the extension of the Paris Agreement.
We engage regularly with CDOTs at official and ministerial level on climate-related matters, including through the UK–Overseas Territories Joint Ministerial Council.