Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to mitigate the impact of volatile gas prices.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has announced unprecedented support to protect households and businesses from rising energy costs, including volatile gas prices. The Energy Price Guarantee and Energy Bill Relief Scheme are supporting millions of households and businesses by reducing the amount suppliers can charge per unit of energy used.
The Government is additionally providing a £400 discount off energy bills under the Energy Bills Support Scheme to households across the UK.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made as to whether a mix of energy sources, including renewables, could facilitate a reduction in energy prices for consumers.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The BEIS "Electricity Generation Costs" report shows that on a levelised cost basis, wind and solar are amongst the cheapest forms of electricity generation in the UK. More low-cost renewables like wind and solar will ensure Britain is less affected by fluctuations in volatile global gas prices.
BEIS’s "Modelling 2050 – electricity system analysis" also shows that low-cost future electricity systems require a mix of technologies to balance demand and supply. Highly renewable systems have the lowest overall costs and lowest carbon emissions.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to implement the upcoming reduction in energy bill support for businesses.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Bill Discount Scheme (EBDS) will go live on 1 April 2023 with support continuing to be applied directly to eligible non-domestic energy bills through energy providers.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to confirm the budget allocated to the Energy Investment Fund in (1) 2021–22, and (2) 2022–23.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Investment Fund is a Scottish Government initiative. Its budget is not a matter for the UK Government.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to remove barriers experienced by offshore oil and gas workers when seeking to transition to green jobs in the offshore energy sector.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In March 2022, a tripartite agreement was reached between the bodies which oversee offshore wind training and qualifications – OPITO, the Global Wind Organisation, and the International Contractors Association – to align training standards to enable workforce mobility.
As part of the commitments in the North Sea Transition Deal, OPITO published an Integrated People and Skills Strategy in May 2022, highlighting the benefits of a managed energy transition and committed to create an aligned training and standards framework (Energy Skills Passport), which will enable skills transfer across the offshore energy sector. This is expected to be deployed in 2023.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support companies facing financial pressures due to the impact of inflation and interest rate increases.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government recognises the impact rising prices are having on businesses.
Businesses will have benefitted from the Government’s reversal of the National Insurance rise, saving businesses on average £4,200, cut fuel duty for 12 months and the Energy Bill Relief Scheme, to protect businesses from high energy costs over the winter. The Employment Allowance was increased to £5,000 from April and we have continued to provide business rate relief worth over £7bn, freezing the business rates multiplier for a further year.
In addition, at the Autumn Statement, my Rt Hon Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer announced £13.6 billion of support for businesses over the next five years, reducing the burden of business rates.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to provide a breakdown of grant support options for SME hospitality businesses seeking to fund expansion and growth projects.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
On 20 July, the Business Secretary announced an extension for the Recovery Loan Scheme to help smaller businesses, including hospitality, access loans and other kinds of finance up to £2 million per business group so they can grow and invest.
The Start Up Loans Company, part of the Government-owned British Business Bank, provides loans and pre- and post-application support to new entrepreneurs, including a year of free business mentoring for successful applicants.
Since the Start Up Loans programme was launched in 2012, over 99,000 loans have been delivered with an aggregate value of more than £9342m (average loan size of £9,369), as of November 2022.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to strengthen Britain’s reputation as an international partner in the energy industry.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The United Kingdom became the first major economy in the world to pass laws to end its contribution to global warming by 2050. Its Net Zero Strategy will secure 480,000 well-paid jobs and unlock £100 billion in investment in 2030. The North Sea Transition Deal sets out how the Government will partner with industry to transition the UK Continental Shelf to a net zero basin by 2050.
The UK works closely with international energy partners through the G7, G20 and International Energy Agency. The Government led the way to reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels in order to starve Putin’s war machine, including through energy sanctions, and maintain stable energy markets and prices. The Government will also continue to support Ukraine and has committed a total of £22 million and additional guarantees to support Ukraine’s energy sector.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to introduce new anti-strike laws to prevent walkouts by emergency service workers.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
While the Government recognises the importance of the right to strike, we need to balance this against the need to protect the public and keep them safe. The Government is therefore reviewing our industrial relations legal framework to ensure that it gets this balance right. More details will be given in due course.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of feedback from businesses that are making use of financial support to trial a four-day working week.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has provided no financial support for trials of a four-day week. The Government has therefore made no such assessment.