Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Barry Sheerman and Charles Hendry
Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)
11. What steps he is taking to encourage biomass-based generation in appropriate and sustainable locations.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Charles Hendry)
Alongside our bio-energy strategy, we have introduced the renewable heat incentive and are currently reviewing support levels for biomass electricity. We are introducing sustainability controls into financial incentives. We have reformed the planning system in England to promote sustainable development and to encourage local authorities to plan for renewables development in the right places.
Mr Sheerman
But does the Minister agree that there is enormous potential for biomass in this country, particularly because it is capable of being produced at the right size, volume and quantity in a location—and there is less resistance to that sort of biomass? The real problem comes when the biomass raw material is imported from South America and Africa and not grown in our own country.
Charles Hendry
The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to highlight the benefits of biomass. In our estimate, in the areas of heat and electricity, biomass could account for 40% of the renewable energy that we need to achieve by 2020. We have to strike the right balance, as there are other uses for wood fuel in this country: it can be used in furniture and in panelling, which are important industries for this country. We believe it right to look at imported fuels as well, as long as they are sustainably produced.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Barry Sheerman and Charles Hendry
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Charles Hendry)
I very much welcome the comments made by the chair of the Environment Agency. I believe he is correct in assessing that, subject to rigorous regulation and monitoring, hydraulic fracturing can safely be used in the UK for shale gas exploration. I also agree on the need to proceed with caution. Fracking should be carried out only under close regulatory control, to ensure that risks are minimised and the environment is fully protected.
Mr Sheerman
It is a relief to know that mentioning the abbreviation “fracking” is within the House rules. Many of us believe that fracking has real potential for energy security, and although we should proceed with it carefully, it could be of huge benefit to this country. Please, do ignore some of the siren voices in the environmental lobby and get on with doing it in a cautious but determined way.
Charles Hendry
The hon. Gentleman is absolutely correct, because we cannot ignore what is happening elsewhere around the world. The gas price in the United States is now one quarter of that in Europe and one seventh of that in Asia, so this is a game-changing technology. However, our commitment is absolutely clear: for this to go ahead, we have to have the tightest regulatory controls and the greatest focus on environmental protection. This is a densely populated island, we have to have public support for this technology going forward and we intend to go about this in a very constructive way, involving all the expert opinion we can.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Barry Sheerman and Charles Hendry(13 years, 1 month ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Charles Hendry
I have serious doubts about the information in that book about the relative costs, particularly compared with countries such as Germany. We have to deal with a legacy of a failure of investment over the past 13 years. Every year of this decade, we will have to secure investment in our energy infrastructure at twice the rate secured in the previous decade, which will entail a cost to consumers, who are picking up the tab for Labour’s failures.
Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)
May I remind the Minister that a leading expert on energy said only this week in the precincts of the House that the real reason for the astronomical energy price rises was the privatisation of the energy industry and the sweating of assets over many years? Is that not the truth? Is that not why we have rocketing energy costs and our European neighbours do not?
Charles Hendry
The hon. Gentleman makes some of the points that I was just making. The sweating of assets to which he referred resulted from the lack of investment over the past 13 years in the building of new plants. It is 15 years since the last nuclear plant was opened, 25 years since it was commissioned and 40 years since the last coal plant was opened. We have not seen enough investment in plant, and that is a legacy issue that is now being addressed. As a result of competition, we ended up with some of the cheapest electricity and gas prices in the whole of Europe, but we have to make up for that legacy of failure.