Prepayment Meters

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Tuesday 14th May 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I understand the point the noble Lord is making, but that is the role of the independent regulator Ofgem. My Secretary of State and Minister Solloway have had regular meetings with suppliers directly and with Ofgem to ensure that they are doing the job correctly and that the assessments are being made correctly, but the noble Lord is right, and we are monitoring the situation closely.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, energy companies will sometimes say that your meter needs to be replaced because it is too old. Of course, this can be used as a ruse to get a prepayment meter installed. Can the Minister say what authority any energy company has to demand that? Who really decides whether a meter is too old? Where does the responsibility lie for this—with property owners, landlords or tenants, who are paying the bills and are often the point of contact? If the Minister cannot answer this question now, I am happy for him to write to me.

Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Committee stage
Thursday 23rd February 2023 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Wheatcroft (CB)]

The Minister said that, once decisions had been taken, he would update the House on the outcome for the 4,700 pieces of legislation. It was that I was querying.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

The Minister mentioned that a decision had been made to continue artists’ resale rights. Where was that original decision made and will it continue in the same form that it is now?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

The Government have signalled our general intention and the importance of the IP protection regime, which of course involves artist resale rights. We have stated our intention for that regime to continue, and we will of course update the House as soon as we have more information.

Hospitality Industry

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Tuesday 24th January 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

My noble friend makes an important point. The sector estimates that the railway strikes have cost it over £1 billion in lost revenue during the strike period, so they do have a significant impact.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, it is a mystery to most people why, if oil and gas prices are coming down, energy bills are still high. For hospitality and arts venues, these bills have increased massively in the last year. Is the Minister aware that, according to the Night Time Industries Association, for most of 2022 one venue closed every two days? The Government should, and can, do much more to help, particularly considering that some energy companies are making huge profits.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

That depends on what the noble Earl defines as an energy company. Many of the energy retailers are making very little money—in fact, they are losing money. Nevertheless, the noble Earl makes an important point. We want to make sure that there is no price gouging going on. We are in regular contact with Ofgem officials, and I have met with them. One of my ministerial colleagues has met with the energy supply companies to make sure that they are also doing all they can to support these vulnerable businesses.

Horizon Europe

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Thursday 8th September 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I very much agree with the noble Lord; it is very much not our intention to increase red tape. We are not ready to give up on Horizon yet, but it is obviously regrettable that the EU does not want to finalise our association and abide by the agreements that it entered into. We have launched the dispute procedure mechanism as a last try to persuade it of the benefits of this co-operation. We have excellent co-operation in other areas, such as energy, where we are helping the EU out in its hour of need. So we hope that it will see sense and abide by the agreement that it entered into, but, as the noble Lord said, we have a plan B if that proves not to be the case.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, the press release of 16 August announcing formal consultations with the EU uses much stronger words than the Minister has. It says:

“UK membership of Horizon Europe would be a win-win for both the UK and EU.”


Will this Government continue to support the words of the then Foreign Secretary, Liz Truss? Will they hold their nerve to achieve that goal, whatever temporary blockage there may be?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I stand completely by those words: it would be a win-win, and we want to do it. It would be to the benefit of the EU and the UK scientific community, and it is regrettable that the EU is refusing to finalise the agreement that it entered into.

European Research Council

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Wednesday 27th April 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I am sorry that the noble Baroness refuses to accept where the blame lies in this circumstance. The UK has not breached any agreements that we signed with the European Union. We have abided by all of them. The EU signed an agreement to say that we would associate with the Horizon programme but is refusing to implement that agreement. The Liberal Democrats and others should stop thinking that everything which the EU does is perfect and believe that there are some cases where it gets things wrong.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, despite what the Minister has just said, the problem is the Northern Ireland protocol, as the last two questioners have said. The EU Research Commissioner confirmed last September that this is why we are being shut out of Horizon Europe while other non-EU countries are being welcomed on board with open arms.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

The Northern Ireland protocol is a completely separate agreement. It is different from the agreement that the EU signed. I am sorry, but we should not accept the EU’s excuses on this. The EU signed an agreement, and it should abide by it. I wish that noble Lords would sometimes be on the UK’s side rather than wanting to see fault in everything that we do. We should allocate the blame where it belongs.

Small Business Commissioner: Late Payments

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Tuesday 7th December 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

These things are all extremely important. I do not know whether there are any specific provisions in trade agreements on prompt payment, but I shall certainly have a look and write to the noble Lord about it.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, does the Minister agree that the key problem for many freelancers, including creative professionals, is that they are caught between what sometimes feels like an ingrained culture of late payment and not being able to challenge for fear of losing work? Ultimately, we need a system that automatically penalises late payers without the aggrieved party having to raise its hand.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

The noble Earl makes a good point. I remind him that UK legislation already establishes a 60-day maximum payment term for contracts for the supply of goods and services between businesses, although those terms can be varied if they are not grossly unfair to the supplier. We also have the prompt payment code. We have received more than 50,000 reports from businesses that they are abiding by the prompt payment code, but there is always more to do on this.

European Union Touring Visas

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Tuesday 14th September 2021 Lords Chamber

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, the Minister will be aware that the big problem for the creative and service industries is being able to move easily across borders without red tape or incurring extra cost. For the music industry, the key problem in this regard is cabotage. When will the Government respond to the summer consultation on this, to which the noble Baroness, Lady Barran, referred in answer to a question last week, bearing in mind that the industry is asking for an exemption from cabotage and cross-trade laws for vehicles carrying passengers and equipment, as the rules agreed through the TCA are prohibitive?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

The Department for Transport has been working closely with the industry to see what unilateral measures the Government could take to support the industry. We are currently considering the evidence that we gathered from the call for evidence that was taken, as the noble Lord says, over the summer. We will endeavour to update the sector on our approach later this year.

Industrial Strategy: Local Growth

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Monday 26th April 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I refer the noble Lord to the answer I just gave to the right reverend Prelate. We will work with local enterprise partnerships, mayoral combined authorities and other local partners. The key to that is local businesses in areas such as Eastbourne, and we will look at the geography and structure of these partnerships going forward.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, if developing skills across the country is to be part of the levelling-up agenda, will the Minister recognise the importance of design, which gets no mention at all in the Build Back Better plan? Does the Minister agree that education and design starting in schools will be crucial in developing creative ideas and innovation, one of the Government’s three pillars of growth?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I agree that design and innovation are going to be key and crucial. We have a history in this country of taking good design and innovation and then not developing them into viable products led by British businesses. That is something that we need to correct, and our forthcoming innovation strategy will address many of these issues.

Covid-19: Night-time Economy

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Tuesday 26th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

No, of course we are not happy about it. We are not happy about any of the measures that have we have been forced to put in place because of the pandemic. We want to see these venues reopening, as soon as it is safe.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, live events are a significant aspect of the night-time economy. The need for a Government-backed insurance scheme to protect organisations against the cancellation of events due to Covid cannot be emphasised enough. Many organisations, including festivals, cannot survive much longer without such insurance, which has been granted to the film and TV sector.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I outlined the support packages earlier. We want to take into account the concerns of many sectors, such as those that the noble Earl highlights. We will keep these matters under review and my colleagues in DCMS will continue to liaise closely with the sector.

Covid-19: Small Businesses

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Wednesday 13th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I will certainly bear the comments made by the noble Baroness in mind. Local authorities across England have been allocated a further £500 million in discretionary funding via the additional restrictions grant to support businesses from 5 January. This could include businesses supplying the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors or businesses outside the current business rates system which have effectively been forced to close

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, are the Government looking at the devolved Administrations? In some cases, they have been more agile in addressing gaps in support for small businesses, such as Northern Ireland’s Covid Restrictions Business Support Scheme which provides grants for supply chain businesses. A similar scheme is operating in Wales. This would certainly give some help to the live music sector, which continues to be hard hit. Technical supply companies have seen a disastrous 95% drop in their revenues.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

As I said earlier, we keep all these matters under review. We are conscious that our scheme is one of the most generous in Europe, with £280 billion-worth of support. Of course, we are always willing to learn lessons from the devolved Administrations or other countries.

Travel Agents

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Monday 23rd November 2020 Lords Chamber

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, while the imminent threat to the travel and holiday industry is the pandemic, can the Minister say what support the Government intend to give from 1 January to British holiday firms and the thousands of British workers, permanent and seasonal, including young working-class people, whose jobs and job opportunities are at risk following the UK leaving the single market?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

The noble Earl makes a good point. We have published lots of information for the travel sector to access. As I said, we are putting in place a comprehensive range of support to help the sector through this difficult and challenging time.

Covid-19: Financial Support for High Street Retailers

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Tuesday 27th October 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

I agree with my noble friend that the retail sector has been undergoing a period of transition that well predates the pandemic. High streets play a crucial part in our rural communities, and through the £3.6 billion Towns Fund and the High Street Task Force we are providing support to local businesses and high streets.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, does the Minister agree that it is difficult to separate the original Question from questions about the longer term at a time, for example, when the current vulnerability coincides with changes to planning regulations? How much importance will be attached to the recent LSE report, Saving the high street: the community takeover, and does its message that close local authority involvement with community-driven projects is central to the future of our town centres have the Government’s support?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

The noble Lord is quite right. We welcome the report prepared for Power to Change, which provides some valuable insights that will inform future policy interventions to support the recovery of the high street and town centres. This is a difficult, ongoing problem and we will want to work closely with both local authorities and retailers to solve it.

Artistic Content: Copyright Protection

Debate between Lord Callanan and Earl of Clancarty

Monday 2nd March 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

The visa system will be the subject of negotiation. The UK is about to implement a new immigration system, but we will, of course, want to continue to co-operate closely with our friends in the EU on these matters. Artists will continue to want to transfer backwards and forwards for their work.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, with respect to the Question, will culture, media and arts services be included in future trade deals with the US, with which we already have a close cultural relationship in the performing arts?

[Lord Callanan]

As the noble Earl will be aware, most trade deals contain a number of paragraphs on cultural exchanges and creative industries. I am sure that that will be the case with the EU agreement and with the US agreement.