Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will extend the Automotive Transformation Fund (a) into and (b) beyond the 2025-26 financial year; and whether any contracts with suppliers to deliver the Automotive Transformation Fund extend (i) into and (ii) beyond the 2025-26 financial year.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
As part of the Advanced Manufacturing Plan, we have announced over £2bn of capital and R&D funding over five years to 2030, boosting the UK’s competitiveness and unlocking strategic investments in our automotive industry.
This funding will be delivered via Auto2030, an ambitious programme building on the work of the Automotive Transformation Fund and the Advanced Propulsion Centre R&D programmes, ensuring continuity in HMG support.
This programme will leverage the UK’s unique innovation ecosystem, building on its strengths as a global centre of automotive R&D. Details of funding opportunities under Auto2030, including delivery mechanisms, will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what estimate she has made of the proportion of carbon emissions resulting from the steel industry in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Government recognises the importance of a decarbonised and sustainable steel sector and is working closely with industry to support its decarbonisation options.
According to Office for National Statistics data (here), the manufacture of basic iron and steel represented between 2 – 3% of all UK carbon dioxide emissions in the latest five-year period for which these were reported.
The table below summarises ONS carbon dioxide emissions for the steel industry:
Reference year | Carbon dioxide emissions (millions of tonnes) |
2021 | 10.9 |
2020 | 11 |
2019 | 10.8 |
2018 | 10.4 |
2017 | 11.1 |
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make an estimate of the number of jobs created by the steel industry in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Government recognises the vital role that steel plays within the UK economy, supporting local economic growth and levelling-up.
According to Office for National Statistics data (here), the provisional release date for the next Business Register and Employment Survey, which includes the year 2022 as a reference period, is September/October 2023.
The table below summarises ONS employment estimates for the steel industry:
Reference year | Jobs |
2021 | 39,000 |
2020 | 33,700 |
2019 | 33,300 |
2018 | 33,100 |
2017 | 32,200 |
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the British Industry Supercharger Scheme on (a) carbon emissions and (b) the (i) viability and (ii) competitiveness of energy intensive industries.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
For energy intensive industries (EIIs) particularly exposed to international trade, paying the full amount of Government electricity policy costs can increase the risk of the movement of production to another country due to the different levels of decarbonisation effort (known as “carbon leakage”). It can also increase the cost of electricity relative to other energy sources making it more challenging for users to switch to less carbon-intensive production.
Analysis shows that the Supercharger proposals could reduce average electricity prices for UK EIIs from around £41MWh to around £22MWh, having a direct impact on their competitiveness and reducing global carbon emissions.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero on encouraging the decarbonisation of energy intensive industries.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Department for Business and Trade and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero are in regular dialogue over their shared aim to help industry decarbonise as the government works to deliver on its net zero ambition.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had discussions with representatives of the steel industry on the adequacy of funding for the clean steel fund; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Government recognises the vital role that the steel sector plays across the UK economy, and we meet regularly with steel industry representatives to discuss a range of issues. We are continuing to work with the sector to understand its decarbonisation investment plans, and representatives for the steel industry have not raised the timings or scale of the Clean Steel Fund in recent months whilst these discussions have been ongoing.
Existing support for the steel industry’s decarbonisation efforts includes funding schemes such as the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF) and the Industrial Decarbonisation and Hydrogen Revenue Support (IDHRS).
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department had discussions with industry stakeholders before announcing the British Industry Supercharger.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Department for Business and Trade holds detailed discussions on new policies with all relevant stakeholders on a regular basis, including ahead of the announcement of the British Industry Supercharger and during the recently closed consultations on the Capacity Market exemption and the Network Charging Costs Compensation Scheme.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to implement the regulatory changes outlined in PPN 04/23 - Procuring Steel in Government Contracts, published 11 April 2023.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
PPN 04/23 sets out the latest project appraisal, commercial and procurement policies which in-scope organisations are expected to reflect. The revised steel data origin requirements are now in force and should be followed. Cabinet Office have disseminated and promoted the Procurement Policy Note with in-scope organisations.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he has made an assessment of the potential merits of producing a new industrial strategy.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is focused on action and has a clear plan to grow the economy and support high growth industries. The Chancellor has identified five key sectors: Digital Technologies, Green Industries, Life Sciences, Advanced Manufacturing and Creative Industries. Delivering growth in these sectors is a priority, and government has announced a £500 million per year package for 20,000 research and development intensive businesses and a £650 million war chest to fire up the UK’s sciences sector.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the level of the clean steel fund.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 12th July 2023, UIN 192830.