Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the decision in the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan to allow only 700 megawatts of additional Scottish onshore wind capacity to connect to the grid between 2031 and 2035.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
The regional capacity breakdowns for transmission connected technologies required for 2035 as set out in the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan, connections reform annex, have been developed using ranges from the NESO Future Energy Scenarios 2024 net zero aligned scenarios.
The ‘Future Energy Scenarios: Pathways to Net Zero 2025’ document outlines NESO’s methodology in full detail.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have undertaken an impact assessment of the decision to cap the supply of projects in the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan and the risk of driving up bills by reducing competition.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
The capacity ranges set out in the Action Plan are not intended to cap supply of projects but, amongst other things, help prioritise the reform of the connections process. Today’s connections queue is significantly oversubscribed, with large volumes of some technologies and less of others.
It is vital that Contracts for Difference (CfD) continues to offer value for money to consumers and continue to deliver low prices, which is why auctions are designed to keep the process competitive.
Our reforms are aimed at improving the ability of the CfD mechanism to support a large volume of renewable capacity – particularly offshore wind – whilst maintaining competition, which provides value for money for consumers.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government why the civil nuclear new build sector was not identified as a key sector to be included within their Energy Skills Passport, launched on 22 January; and what plans they have to include it, given the UK's nuclear sector needs 40,000 net new entrants by 2030 to meet its growth ambitions.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
The Department is a strategic partner of the Energy Skills Passport project in collaboration with industry and Scottish Government. The passport is an industry led initiative overseen by Renewable UK and Offshore Energy UK and supported by the UK and Scottish Governments.
The Department and Scottish government are working with RUK/OEUK to identify how best to expand the passport in the future.
Through the Nuclear Skills Plan, we are committed to encouraging career transitions and accelerating learning and upskilling for new entrants into the nuclear sector.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the outcome of the prior information notice (PIN) exploring building a further large-scale nuclear power station, published in May 2024; whether they will list the potential vendors who expressed an interest; and what assessment they have made of the future policy for large-scale nuclear development in the UK.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
The Prior Information Notice was published to support policy exploration under the previous Government and has since closed with 10 responses. The names of the organisations which responded is commercially sensitive. No decision has yet been taken on whether to pursue a future large-scale project.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they will publish the consultation on nuclear power being classed as environmentally sustainable in the green taxonomy; and what plans they have to make nuclear energy eligible for green financing.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
On 14th November 2024, the Government published a consultation to assess the value case for a UK Green Taxonomy, which closed on 6 of February 2025. The Government is reviewing responses and will provide a Government Response on next steps in due course.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in reducing the time taken to process Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) applications, and particularly SAP Appendix Q applications.
Answered by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
The Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) application processes ensure that effective and innovative products are rewarded in the SAP methodology and thereby in Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) and retrofit schemes. Officials are working to reduce delays in the SAP applications process, including Appendix Q. By collaborating with commercial partners and gathering stakeholder feedback, officials are also looking at ways to continuously improve the turnaround times of SAP applications and reform the overall service.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the economic benefits of the Midlands Rail Hub project; and how they are broken down by council or local authority area.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
We are working with Network Rail, Midlands Connect, and West Midlands Rail Executive, to maximise the benefits of Midlands Rail Hub throughout the region. Midlands Connect are leading the development of the rationale for the scheme, including the distribution of socio-economic benefits, and will be able to provide more detail.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have (1) to conduct research on the practical, technical and economic impacts of regulating for embodied carbon emissions, and (2) to consult on measuring and reducing embodied carbon in buildings and the timing of any such consultation.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
My department has been conducting research into the practical, technical and economic impacts of regulating embodied carbon in new buildings. This research is now nearing completion and will inform future policy decisions, including when and how to seek views on the measurement and reduction of embodied carbon.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to legislate to bring in the Future Homes Standard and Future Buildings Standard; and when these will apply to all new (1) domestic, and (2) non-domestic, buildings respectively.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Future Homes and Buildings Standards consultation was published in December 2023 and closed in March 2024, and a government response has not yet been issued. The consultation proposed that the new standards would apply to all new domestic and non-domestic buildings.
We fully support the need for low carbon homes and buildings, fit for a net zero future. We are reviewing proposals and feedback from the Future Homes and Buildings Standards consultation and will publish the government response in due course.
Asked by: Lord Ravensdale (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what strategic plans they have to increase private investment in the Midlands Rail Hub.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Shadow Minister (Home Office)
The Government has committed in Network North to delivering Midlands Rail Hub in full and increasing funding to £1.75bn, and we have recently released £123m to Network Rail to move the first phase into the detailed design stage. As the scheme progresses through this next stage, we will work with key partners to identify and pursue opportunities for private funding.