Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what will be the full estimated out-turn cost for each small modular reactor project planned by Great British Nuclear (1) at the end of the design period, an (2) at the point of generating electricity commercially.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
GBN (Great British Nuclear) is pushing forward its small modular reactor competition for UK deployment and is negotiating with four companies. Final decisions will be taken in the spring.
In line with usual government approvals, it will be important that any SMR projects represent value for money for the British taxpayer.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the predicted date of (1) the end of the design period at the point of investment decision, and (2) the point of generating electricity commercially, for each small modular reactor projects planned by Great British Nuclear.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Great British Nuclear (GBN) is pushing forward its small modular reactor competition for UK deployment, which is based on fairness and transparency to ensure value for the British taxpayer. Final decisions will be taken in the spring.
GBN is seeking those technologies best able to facilitate commercially operational projects by the mid-2030s.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the full estimated out-turn cost for each small modular reactor project planned by Great British Nuclear will include costs for a quantified risk register, and the value of any money set against a quantified risk register.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
GBN (Great British Nuclear) is pushing forward its small modular reactor competition for UK deployment, which is based on fairness and transparency to ensure value for the British taxpayer. Final decisions will be taken in the spring.
GBN follows usual government best practice for delivering major projects.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the full estimated out-turn cost for each small modular reactor project planned by Great British Nuclear will take account of optimism bias, and include the value of any money set against optimism bias.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
GBN (Great British Nuclear) is pushing forward its small modular reactor competition for UK deployment, which is based on fairness and transparency to ensure value for the British taxpayer. Final decisions will be taken in the spring.
GBN follows usual government best practice for delivering major projects.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their timescale for the next local elections in the devolution areas on the Devolution Primary Programme where the May 2025 local elections have been postponed.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government has been clear that our intention is that elections for mayors for the Devolution Priority Areas will be held in May 2026. The election to the county councils of East Sussex, Essex, Hampshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and West Sussex and the unitary councils of Isle of Wight and Thurrock will be postponed to take place alongside the Mayoral election in May 2026. Elections to other councils in the Devolution Priority Programme areas are also scheduled to take place in May 2026.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much recyclable waste was incinerated in 2023.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
A total of 18 million tonnes of waste was incinerated in 2023 in England (Source: Waste Management Summary for England for 2023). This compares with 17.2 million tonnes in 2022. Information on how much of this was recyclable is not held.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the National Security Online Information Team’s work on freedom of expression.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
NSOIT’s commitment to protecting freedom of expression is embedded in its compliance policies and practices. For example, NSOIT has a blanket ban on referring content from journalists and politicians to social media platforms. Its privacy notices are publicly available on gov.uk.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much residual waste was incinerated in 2022 (1) by weight, and (2) as a proportion of all residual waste.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
For too long the nation has seen recycling rates stagnate and relied on burning or burying waste.
The Government is committed to transitioning to a circular economy, a future where we keep our resources in use for longer, waste is reduced, we accelerate the path to net zero, we see investment in critical infrastructure and green jobs, our economy prospers, and nature thrives. Key to this commitment is the reduction of residual waste. The Government has set out that it will only back new waste incineration projects that meet strict conditions and that these are in accordance with the long-term residual waste reduction target.
Estimates of residual waste (excluding major mineral wastes) in England, and their treatment method, for 2022 were published in April 2024 (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/estimates-of-residual-waste-excluding-major-mineral-wastes-and-municipal-residual-waste-in-england).
It is not possible to provide a figure for residual waste as a proportion of all waste. A comparable figure of all waste is not available.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much residual waste was disposed of in 2022 (1) by weight, and (2) as a proportion of all waste.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
For too long the nation has seen recycling rates stagnate and relied on burning or burying waste.
The Government is committed to transitioning to a circular economy, a future where we keep our resources in use for longer, waste is reduced, we accelerate the path to net zero, we see investment in critical infrastructure and green jobs, our economy prospers, and nature thrives. Key to this commitment is the reduction of residual waste. The Government has set out that it will only back new waste incineration projects that meet strict conditions and that these are in accordance with the long-term residual waste reduction target.
Estimates of residual waste (excluding major mineral wastes) in England, and their treatment method, for 2022 were published in April 2024 (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/estimates-of-residual-waste-excluding-major-mineral-wastes-and-municipal-residual-waste-in-england).
It is not possible to provide a figure for residual waste as a proportion of all waste. A comparable figure of all waste is not available.
Asked by: Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following DEFRA’s press release ‘Government to crack down on waste incinerators with stricter standards for new builds’ published on 30 December 2024, what is the timescale for requiring carbon capture and storage technology to be installed on (1) new, and (2) existing, incinerators recovering energy from waste.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero has responsibility for decarbonisation readiness requirements and support for waste CCUS projects. Defra officials work closely with officials in his department on this. The decarbonisation readiness requirements will come into force for new and substantially refurbished energy from waste facilities from 28 February 2026.
The Government has developed a business model to support carbon capture, usage, and storage (CCUS) waste projects and stimulate private sector investment, including project finance. By providing an incentive mechanism for waste CCUS, we can support the sector to decarbonise and support carbon budget and net zero commitments.