Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Industry

Lord Markham Excerpts

Wednesday 19th November 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord for his question, which raises a very important issue. It is fair to say that hydrogen cannot provide all the answers to issues around energy provision, but it can reach those hard-to-reach businesses such as steel and chemicals, for example. We need to set up a system in which we can do that. The Government are investing in that; we are spending tens of millions of pounds on doing just that. It is something that we want to see grow into the future. As I have said, by 2050 it will be a $1 trillion industry, and the UK has to be part of it.

[Lord Markham (Con)]

Following on from the point made by the noble Baroness, Lady Walmsley, US and European industries have a very simple tax incentive and subsidy plan to encourage domestic production of clean hydrogen, and their industries are responding as a result. By contrast, we have quite a clever but complicated and opaque system, which means that we are not seeing the same level of UK hydrogen production or equipment. Do we have any plans to review our system to learn the lessons from best practice around the world?

[Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)]

We are always open to reviewing what the Government do in all varieties of ways to do with tax. We will have to wait to see whether there is anything on that in the Budget next week. As I said, we are investing in the supply chain. We want to see energy produced in the most effective way. I think we will be in a position over the next couple of years, especially with the hydrogen strategy, which will be published in the next while, to show to the country and to the industry that we are taking this seriously. If anything needs to be reviewed, I am sure that we will be prepared to do that.