Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Northern Ireland Executive regarding the use of renewable energy in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy is working closely with Northern Ireland’s Department for the Economy and is committed to exploring options for Northern Ireland to join the Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme – the UK’s main support mechanism for large-scale renewable generation. My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State also recently met with the Northern Ireland Assembly's Minister for the Economy Gordon Lyons where, amongst other issues, there was a discussion around Northern Ireland and the CfD scheme. Current work is considering a range of issues, including impacts on consumer bills and wider implications for how the scheme operates currently in Great Britain.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve the energy efficiency of homes through retrofitting.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government remains committed to its manifesto pledge to invest £9.2 billion in the energy efficiency of homes, schools, and hospitals, helping to decarbonising buildings to keep us on track to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
In addition, the Energy Company Obligation has already installed 3.3 million measures in 2.3 million homes, and we are increasing the amount energy suppliers invest in energy efficiency measures for low-income households, recently consulted on a successor scheme ECO until 2026, and boosting its value from £640 million to £1 billion a year. This will help an extra 305,000 families with green measures such as insulation, with average energy bill savings of around £300 a year.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the ability of Trading Standards to pursue sellers of toys not in compliance with UK safety regulations.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is committed to ensuring that only safe products can be sold in the UK and existing laws require that all consumer products, including toys sold online, must be safe before they can be placed on the UK market.
The national product safety regulator, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), and Local Authority Trading Standards have powers to take action against manufacturers, importers or distributors who sell unsafe and non-compliant toys, including through online marketplaces. These regulators have access to a national Product Safety Database to share information and to help prioritise and target activity.
The Government recognises the scale of the challenge in regulating online sales and OPSS is taking forward a programme of work to help ensure the safety of products sold online. This includes actively identifying products available online that pose a serious risk and ensuring that non-compliant products being sold by third-party sellers are removed from sale. Since April 2021, OPSS interventions have led to the withdrawal of more than 10,000 unsafe products, including toys, previously listed and available in the UK, via online marketplaces.
The Government’s review of the UK’s product safety framework aims to ensure it remains robust and is future-proofed so that it continues to protect consumers while enabling businesses to safely innovate and grow. This includes reviewing the impact of eCommerce on the product safety framework to ensure appropriate accountability and clear responsibilities throughout the supply chain.
The Government has analysed submissions to the Call for Evidence and is currently finalising its response which will be published in due course. OPSS officials continue to engage with stakeholders as the review progresses and any proposals for legislative change would be subject to public consultation.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take following the closure of the UK product safety review: call for evidence on 17 June; and what are the timelines for those steps.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is committed to ensuring that only safe products can be sold in the UK and existing laws require that all consumer products, including toys sold online, must be safe before they can be placed on the UK market.
The national product safety regulator, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), and Local Authority Trading Standards have powers to take action against manufacturers, importers or distributors who sell unsafe and non-compliant toys, including through online marketplaces. These regulators have access to a national Product Safety Database to share information and to help prioritise and target activity.
The Government recognises the scale of the challenge in regulating online sales and OPSS is taking forward a programme of work to help ensure the safety of products sold online. This includes actively identifying products available online that pose a serious risk and ensuring that non-compliant products being sold by third-party sellers are removed from sale. Since April 2021, OPSS interventions have led to the withdrawal of more than 10,000 unsafe products, including toys, previously listed and available in the UK, via online marketplaces.
The Government’s review of the UK’s product safety framework aims to ensure it remains robust and is future-proofed so that it continues to protect consumers while enabling businesses to safely innovate and grow. This includes reviewing the impact of eCommerce on the product safety framework to ensure appropriate accountability and clear responsibilities throughout the supply chain.
The Government has analysed submissions to the Call for Evidence and is currently finalising its response which will be published in due course. OPSS officials continue to engage with stakeholders as the review progresses and any proposals for legislative change would be subject to public consultation.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what (1) steps they have taken, and (2) further plans they have, to ensure that children are protected from harm caused by toys sold in online marketplaces which are not compliant with UK safety regulations.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is committed to ensuring that only safe products can be sold in the UK and existing laws require that all consumer products, including toys sold online, must be safe before they can be placed on the UK market.
The national product safety regulator, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), and Local Authority Trading Standards have powers to take action against manufacturers, importers or distributors who sell unsafe and non-compliant toys, including through online marketplaces. These regulators have access to a national Product Safety Database to share information and to help prioritise and target activity.
The Government recognises the scale of the challenge in regulating online sales and OPSS is taking forward a programme of work to help ensure the safety of products sold online. This includes actively identifying products available online that pose a serious risk and ensuring that non-compliant products being sold by third-party sellers are removed from sale. Since April 2021, OPSS interventions have led to the withdrawal of more than 10,000 unsafe products, including toys, previously listed and available in the UK, via online marketplaces.
The Government’s review of the UK’s product safety framework aims to ensure it remains robust and is future-proofed so that it continues to protect consumers while enabling businesses to safely innovate and grow. This includes reviewing the impact of eCommerce on the product safety framework to ensure appropriate accountability and clear responsibilities throughout the supply chain.
The Government has analysed submissions to the Call for Evidence and is currently finalising its response which will be published in due course. OPSS officials continue to engage with stakeholders as the review progresses and any proposals for legislative change would be subject to public consultation.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of progress towards the globally agreed aim of limiting global heating to below 2°C; and pursuing efforts to limit heating to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
While we welcome progress made and new Nationally Determined Contributions and commitments made at the Climate Ambition Summit and since by many parties, we agree with assessments by the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Energy Agency, and the Climate Action Tracker that there remains a significant gap to achieving below 2°C and to 1.5°C.
The temperature goal of the Paris Agreement is just within reach, but to achieve it, further ambition is needed and must be acted on today. That is why we are asking all countries to come forward ahead of COP26 with enhanced and ambitious commitments to reduce emissions and scale up adaptation.
The UK is driving up global climate ambition and fostering a global, green, inclusive and resilient recovery from COVID-19 through our leadership in multilateral forum, our COP26 and G7 Presidencies, our international climate finance commitments and our International Energy Unit.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take to promote climate action and a green recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic ahead of COP26.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As part of the Government’s commitment to build back better from the pandemic, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister set out in his Ten Point Plan for the UK to lead the world into a Green Industrial Revolution. This innovative programme set out ambitious policies and £12 billion of government investment to support up to 250,000 green jobs across the UK, accelerate our path to reaching net zero by 2050 and lay the foundations for our green recovery by building back greener from COVID-19.
We are making real progress in delivering the Ten Point Plan while setting out plans for further climate action. Since last November, we have secured new investments in offshore wind, electric vehicles and battery manufacturing and supply chains, and rolled out schemes to decarbonise homes and buildings - supporting green jobs across the UK. We have also published our Energy White Paper, North Sea Transition Deal, Transport Decarbonisation Plan, Industrial Decarbonisation and Hydrogen Strategy and consultation on Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) business models.
This November, the UK will host COP26 in Glasgow bringing together world leaders, climate experts, business leaders and citizens to agree ambitious action to tackle climate change. Ahead of COP26, we will bring forward further bold proposals, including a Net Zero Strategy, to cut emissions and create new jobs and industries across the whole country, going further and faster towards building a stronger, more resilient future and protecting our planet for this generation and those to come.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take to achieve (1) the UK’s Nationally Determined Contribution to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) under the Paris Agreement, and (2) the net zero target ahead of COP26.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We will publish a comprehensive Net Zero Strategy ahead of COP26, setting out the Government’s vision for transitioning to a net zero economy. This will raise ambition as we outline our path to meet net zero by 2050, our Carbon Budgets and Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).