Oral Answers to Questions

Bill Esterson Excerpts

Wednesday 11th September 2024 Commons Chamber

[Gill German (Clwyd North) (Lab)]

7. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on support for clean energy projects in Wales.

[Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab)]

9. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on support for clean energy projects in Wales.

[Henry Tufnell (Mid and South Pembrokeshire) (Lab)]

12. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on support for clean energy projects in Wales.

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[Jo Stevens]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on winning her seat. The Government have a clear mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower by investing in home-grown energy to grow the economy, create jobs, boost skills and strengthen our energy independence. In Wales, we have the resources and skills to be a leader in cutting-edge energy technologies, creating high-quality jobs right across the country, including in north Wales. It would be a pleasure to visit Creating Enterprise with my hon. Friend.

[Bill Esterson]

My right hon. Friend mentioned the exciting opportunities from offshore wind for the people and economy of Wales. Can she tell the House about the discussions that she and her Cabinet colleagues have had with the Crown Estate about maximising the benefits from those opportunities?

[Jo Stevens]

We believe that the new innovative partnership between Great British Energy and the Crown Estate will leverage up to £60 billion of private investment into the UK’s drive for energy independence. I am delighted that the Crown Estate has today published plans to bring an additional 20 GW to 30 GW of offshore wind to market by 2030. That is excellent news for Wales’s clean energy ambitions, particularly for floating offshore wind in the Celtic sea. I recently met the Energy Secretary, and separately the Crown Estate, to discuss how this new industry can deliver jobs and growth across Wales.

Oral Answers to Questions

Bill Esterson Excerpts

Wednesday 24th May 2023 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Morgan (Portsmouth South) (Lab)]

10. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support the decarbonisation of energy-intensive industries in Wales.

[Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab)]

11. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support the decarbonisation of energy-intensive industries in Wales.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Dr James Davies)]

This Government are committed to supporting the decarbonisation of Welsh industry. We have committed £20 billion over the next two decades to the deployment of innovative carbon capture technology. This builds on existing support for the HyNet cluster in north Wales and north-west England and the £21.5 million to develop the South Wales industrial cluster.

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[Bill Esterson]

The UK is the only country in the G7 whose steel industry is currently in decline. Why will the Government not end their sticking-plaster approach, match Labour’s commitment to a £3 billion green steel fund, and invest in a long-term plan to decarbonise the vital steel sector in Wales?

[Dr Davies]

Let me I repeat what I said earlier. The Secretary of State visited the plant in Port Talbot recently, and is committed to it. We need to see an electric arc furnace, because that is the way to protect jobs and ensure that we have steel production in the UK.

Oral Answers to Questions

Bill Esterson Excerpts

Wednesday 26th February 2020 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I can, of course, give that commitment when the moment is right.

[Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab)]

Q8. The Prime Minister has a laundry list of climate promises. No doubt he will read them out shortly, but he cannot escape the fact that, on current rate of progress, net zero will not be reached until 2099—not the 2050 that he claims, let alone the 2030 that we probably need. Even J. P. Morgan says that human life, as we know it, is under threat. The Prime Minister cannot be a climate denier, can he, so when will he take climate crisis seriously?

[The Prime Minister]

These are not promises: these are what we have already done. It is thanks to Conservative action on climate change that we have reduced CO₂ output by 43% on 1990 levels since 2010, and the economy has grown by 73%. Some 99% of all the solar panels installed in this country have happened under this Conservative Government. In 1990, this country was 70% dependent on coal: today, it is 3%—and Labour would reopen the coalmines.

Oral Answers to Questions

Bill Esterson Excerpts

Wednesday 13th January 2016 Commons Chamber

The Prime Minister was asked—

[Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab)]

Q1. If he will list his official engagements for Wednesday 13 January.

[The Prime Minister (Mr David Cameron)]

This morning I had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others, and in addition to my duties in this House I shall have further such meetings later today.

[Bill Esterson]

The Royal College of Midwives has called the Government’s plans to cut nurses’ student grants “appalling” and the Royal College of Nursing says it is “deeply concerned”. Meanwhile, the hon. Member for Lewes (Maria Caulfield), who is a nurse, says she would have struggled to undertake her nurse training, given the proposed changes to the bursary scheme. So why does the Prime Minister still think he is right to scrap grants for student nurses?

[The Prime Minister]

For the simple reason that we want to see more nurses in training and more nurses in our NHS. We believe there will be an additional 10,000 nurses because of this change. The facts are that two out of three people who want to become nurses today cannot do so because they are constrained by the bursary scheme. Moving to the new system, those who want to become nurses will be able to become nurses.