Oral Answers to Questions

Cat Smith Excerpts

Tuesday 18th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Andrew Snowden (Fylde) (Con)]

10. Whether he is taking steps to maintain the role of nuclear energy within his energy security strategy.

[Cat Smith (Lancaster and Wyre) (Lab)]

13. What steps he is taking to support the nuclear power sector.

[Peter Prinsley (Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket) (Lab)]

17. What steps he is taking to support the nuclear power sector.

--- Later in debate ---

[Sarah Jones]

The hon. Gentleman makes a good point. The Prime Minister, the Secretary of State and, indeed, the Minister for nuclear in the other place have visited the hon. Gentleman’s constituency and seen the good work that is happening there, and just shy of £20 million from Government grants has gone into that work to help develop nuclear fuels, which will be part of the future. The big nuclear developments at Sizewell and Hinkley, SMRs and advanced modular reactors all need to be in the mix, and he is absolutely right to make that point.

[Cat Smith]

Many of my constituents were pleased to see the extension of Heysham 1 and 2 late last year, and they would like long-term jobs for the future in the nuclear industry created in the north-west. Does the Minister agree that it is thanks to this Labour Government that we are ending the last Government’s legacy of no new nuclear being built?

[Sarah Jones]

I completely agree. The Conservative party built no new nuclear in 14 years. Small modular reactors will bring energy efficiency and economic growth to many parts of this country. We are working at pace and will make sure that we have the answer on SMRs shortly. We will have the answer on Sizewell in the spending review, and of course nuclear will play a big role in the future.

Net Zero by 2050

Cat Smith Excerpts

Monday 16th October 2023 Commons Chamber

[Claire Coutinho]

We have set out our position on the zero-emission mandate. However, we are also looking at synthetic fuels. As I said, we are consulting on them for aviation, and we can look at them more broadly. However, we have set out the position on the ZEV mandate, which has been widely welcomed.

[Cat Smith (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Lab)]

Given that the rowing back on the commitments towards net zero came on the first day of the parliamentary recess, it looked an awful lot like there was an attempt to avoid democratic scrutiny. The Secretary of State has said that she wants to take people with her. May I put to her a group of people she could take with her by reversing some of these daft decisions: private renters. When I meet families who are renting from private landlords, particularly in the Marsh area of Lancaster, I hear that their energy bills are far higher because of their doors and windows and how their roofs are leaky and not insulated. That rowing back on the standard in the private rented sector is costing families more. Will she please look again at that?

[Claire Coutinho]

I thank the hon. Lady, but that takes some gall when the Labour party left the proportion of energy-efficient homes in this country at 14% and we have taken it to 50%. I have set out the multiple billions that we will be spending on insulation, which is important to us. But, at the same time, asking families up and down the country to spend £10,000 on updating homes would have been passed on in rents and may have led to more shortages in the private rented sector. That is something we absolutely must not see at a time when families are struggling.