Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2024 to Question 19633 on Gaza: Humanitarian Aid, if he will publish a detailed plan on the alternative routes the UK has planned for ensuring aid gets into Gaza; and what contingencies he has in place should aid not be delivered.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
On 5 April, Israel committed to significant steps to increase the amount of aid getting to Gaza. The UK has urged Israel to take these steps for a long time and they are welcome. We are working to get aid through these new humanitarian routes as soon as possible.
To date, UK funding has supported the work of partners including the British Red Cross, World Food Programme, UNICEF and Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS) to deliver vital supplies.
We continue to call for an immediate pause to get aid in and hostages out, then progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2024 to Question 19634 on Hamas: UNRWA, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the interim report on UNRWA neutrality policies and system.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We are aware that the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services and Catherine Colonna have now provided their interim reports to the UN Secretary-General.
We want UNRWA to give detailed undertakings about changes in personnel, policy and precedents to ensure this can never happen again.
We are working with allies to try to bring this situation to a rapid conclusion - not least because UNRWA has a vital role to play in providing aid and services in Gaza.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2024 Question 19633 on Gaza: Humanitarian Aid, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the additional border crossings; and whether he has sought assurances from Israel on compliance with opening a crossing in northern Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Palestinians are facing a devastating and growing humanitarian crisis.
The British Government have pressed Israeli counterparts to increase the flow of aid into Gaza.
On 5th April Israel committed to significant steps to increase the amount of aid getting to Gaza, including allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid through the Port of Ashdod and the Erez checkpoint.
The UK has urged Israel to take these steps for a long time and they are welcome. We are resolved that the international community will work with Israel to see these vital changes fully implemented.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many additional skilled workers will be needed to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government’s policy and spending ambitions will support up to 480,000 jobs in 2030, with over 80,000 green jobs currently being supported or in the pipeline across the UK as a result of new government policies and spending.
We have not made an assessment of the number of additional skilled workers needed to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate her Department has made of how many heat pumps will be installed by 2028 at the current rate of deployment.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government remains fully committed to supporting heat pumps and aims to grow the market to 600,000 installations per year by 2028. The Micro Generation Certification Scheme (MCS) estimate that around 40,400 heat pumps were installed in 2023, however new build and installations not using Government funding are not generally recorded by MCS.
Deployment will accelerate with Government support through measures including the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, the Heat Training Grant to support installers, and the Clean Heat Market Mechanism, which the Government plans to bring in in 2025. The Future Homes Standard will drive installations for new build homes.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department has plans to roll out a national energy efficiency advice service.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government has launched several digital services aimed at improving people's access to energy efficiency information and advice. The ‘Find Ways to Save Energy in Your Home’ service provides tailored and independent recommendations for home improvement and retrofit. This can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/improve-energy-efficiency
Additionally, consumers can check their eligibility for either the Great British Insulation Scheme or the Home Upgrade Grant scheme. These services are supported by a phoneline, to help those needing more bespoke support or those digitally excluded. The Government will continue to improve and expand these services based on user insight and feedback.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of including (a) LED lighting, (b) water efficiency devices and (c) other bill-saving technologies in the scope of (i) the Energy Company Obligation and (ii) other fuel poverty schemes.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Under current assessments, Government energy efficiency schemes prioritise measures that have beneficial long-term effects on lowering bills and making homes more comfortable and affordable to live in.
Current schemes allow the installation of measures which improve the energy performance of a dwelling within the scope of the “Standard Assessment Procedure” (SAP) – which assesses the energy performance of dwellings.
This can include measures such as solid wall insulation, cavity wall insulation, loft insulation, underfloor insulation, draught-proofing, air source heat pumps, ground source heat pumps, high heat retention storage heating, low energy lighting, solar PV, solar thermal and heating controls.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on Israel’s (a) policy on determining what aid is allowed into Gaza and (b) compliance with international humanitarian law on the entry of goods for the civilian population in Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have pressed the urgency of getting significantly more aid into Gaza to alleviate the desperate situation with Israeli counterparts.
We are calling on Israel to increase access for aid through land routes, scale up the Jordan corridor with a streamlined screening and delivery process, open a crossing in northern Gaza (Karni, Erez or a new crossing point), fully open Ashdod Port for aid delivery and increase screening capacity at Kerem Shalom and Nitzana to seven days a week and extended hours.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March 2024 to Question 15935 on Hamas: UNRWA, whether he received evidence from (a) the Israeli government, (b) other governments and (c) third parties that workers for the UN Relief and Works Agency were (i) complicit and (ii) participants in the Hamas terrorist attacks on 7 October 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UN Secretary-General has commissioned two independent investigations; one by the Office for Internal Oversight Services, and one on UNRWA neutrality policies and systems, which is being led by Catherine Colonna. We are following these investigations closely. We continue to urge Israel and all parties with relevant information to cooperate fully.
Asked by: Alan Brown (Scottish National Party - Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2024 to Question 18508 on Oldbury Power Station and Wylfa Power Station: Land, who undertook the independent valuation; and whether the commercial value of land adjacent to decommissioned reactors was taken into account as part of that valuation.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Independent valuations of the land were conducted by Knight Frank. The inherent characteristics of the land as well as the previous development work which make the land suitable for consideration for nuclear development informed the valuation of the sites.