Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the contribution of natural stone and other low-carbon materials to reducing embodied carbon in the UK construction sector.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The department is currently developing policies that will help grow the market for low carbon industrial products, including green procurement and improved carbon accounting. The initial focus of these policies is steel, cement, and concrete products used in construction.
The department recently ran a technical consultation that included questions on whether other industrial sectors should be included in the scope of these policies in future. Although natural stone was not explicitly mentioned in the consultation, it would align with one of the options; to take a strategic approach to expand these policies to other sectors related to construction. The department is currently reviewing the responses to this consultation and will publish a summary and its own response in due course.
The government also recognises the role that whole life carbon assessments can play in helping developers to evaluate carbon emissions across all stages of a building or structure’s life. This approach can support decision makers to adopt materials which have a lower overall environmental impact. Whole life carbon assessments are embedded into green procurement approaches being taken by government departments, such as instituting carbon management plans.
The department would welcome engagement with any interested stakeholders from the natural stone sector.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department's target in the 2021 North Sea Transition Deal to support 40,000 direct and indirect supply chain jobs has been met.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Deal agreed in 2021 did not include a target to support 40,000 direct and indirect supply chain jobs. This figure was an estimate of the total number of jobs which could be supported, if several commitments in the Deal are met.
Government and industry continue to make progress, working together to deliver on the commitments in this long-term Deal. Government is determined to support workers and the supply chain to build on the opportunities the transition presents, to create high quality, well-paying jobs in existing and future energy industries, with no community left behind.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many (a) direct and (b) indirect supply chain jobs have been created under the North Sea Transition Deal.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The North Sea Transition Deal remains an important partnership between Government and industry, but job creation is based on many factors. Attributing direct or indirect job creation to the Deal alone is not possible and the Department does not track these figures.
The Government and industry continue to work together to deliver on the commitments in the North Sea Transition Deal. This includes actions to support workers and the supply chain to build on the opportunities the transition presents, to create high quality, well-paying jobs in existing and future energy industries, with no community left behind.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many (a) direct and (b) indirect jobs have been created through (i) platform electrification, (ii) CCUS and (iii) hydrogen between 2021-2024.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government does not currently have information on jobs created in platform electrification, CCUS and hydrogen between 2021-2024.
In 2024, the Government confirmed funding for 11 HAR1 projects, which are estimated to support around 760 direct jobs during construction and operation.
The £21.7 billion of funding for Track 1 announced last year is intended estimated to support up to 4,000 direct jobs and the industry as a whole will support up to 50,000 jobs as the sector develops into the 2030s
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps the Government is taking to support negotiations to agree an ambitious New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance at COP29.
Answered by Kerry McCarthy
Delivering an ambitious outcome on the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) is critical to ensure we can deliver towards the ambition of the Paris Agreement. The UK is committed to working together with all Parties to agree a new climate finance goal that supports the most vulnerable, encourages finance to increase from all sources and accelerates the necessary reforms of the global financial architecture. In line with this, the UK is actively engaging internationally at both Ministerial and Official levels with developed and developing countries to achieve an outcome which meets these critical objectives.