Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Damian Hinds and Lord Barker of Battle(10 years, 9 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Gregory Barker
I am aware of the comparison that my hon. Friend makes. However, the fact is that we have an extraordinary requirement for new investment thanks to the dearth of investment, and long-term investment, that we saw under 13 years of Labour. We are now playing catch-up. We require over £100 billion to go into our energy sector to secure our supplies, and I am afraid that that money has to come from somewhere.
Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con)
6. What recent assessment he has made of the incidence of fuel poverty in rural off-gas grid areas; and what steps he is taking to tackle such fuel poverty.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
One in five of the fuel-poor does not have access to mains gas, and the majority of those households are in rural areas. We are determined to increase the delivery of energy efficiency improvements to the rural fuel-poor and to achieve far more for rural areas than previous schemes. We are actively taking forward a number of initiatives to deliver on that.
Damian Hinds
There are an estimated 10,000 off-grid homes in East Hampshire. I know that the Minister is personally committed to tackling rural fuel poverty where it appears, but what is being done on a practical basis, including on encouraging off-peak buying and ensuring that the code of practice is upheld?
Gregory Barker
I know this is an issue about which my hon. Friend feels particularly strongly, so I am happy to confirm to him that we are taking real steps. I will shortly be meeting the biggest seven energy suppliers to discuss improving the delivery of ECO measures, specifically to off-gas and rural homes. We are also consulting on increasing the number of rural low income homes eligible for ECO and incentivising the delivery of measures to off-gas grid, low income and vulnerable households. And—
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Damian Hinds and Lord Barker of Battle
Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con)
14. What recent progress he has made on the roll-out of the green deal.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
The coalition is committed to helping consumers up and down the UK reduce their energy bills by driving energy efficiency. The green deal went live on time, as planned, on Monday 28 January. By the end of April, more than 18,000 assessments had been carried out. Later this month, we will publish data on the number of green deal plans and a breakdown of measures installed through the green deal and ECO.
Damian Hinds
It is encouraging to hear of so many assessments, but how many providers does the Minister anticipate will be offering plans by the end of the year?
Gregory Barker
My hon. Friend is right that the number of companies that are able to offer finance is key. I am extremely encouraged that four companies are already writing plans. The Green Deal Finance Company anticipates that another eight companies will start this month and that a further 20 will begin to write plans by the end of July. We think that about 50-plus companies will offer finance by the end of the year. Ultimately, when to start writing plans is a commercial decision for each company because the green deal is primarily a private sector market that is being created by this Government.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Damian Hinds and Lord Barker of Battle
Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con)
9. What steps he is taking to ensure that small and medium-sized enterprises can participate in the green deal.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
Small and medium-sized enterprises are key to the successful delivery of the green deal. To give them the help that they need to get started, we have given them special financial help to get the training that they need, and waived SME installer and assessor registration fees for the first two years of the green deal. We have also begun a series of regional green deal road shows aimed at explaining to SMEs exactly how they can access the market, and I am pleased to tell the House that they are proving highly popular.
Damian Hinds
Large installer companies will partner large financing companies to offer a seamless product to households. How will my hon. Friend promote white-labelled financing products so that small businesses in my constituency can do the same?
Gregory Barker
My hon. Friend is absolutely right to suggest that a lot of SMEs want to be green deal providers and offer that service in their own right to consumers, and it is vital that they should be able to do so. I am pleased to say that a number of commercial offers are now coming forward to create exactly that white-label proposition, and the Department is doing everything it can to facilitate that. We are also looking at other ways in which we can give confidence to the SME sector.
Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con)
Does my hon. Friend agree that the continued growth of UK solar vindicates the approach of this Government, who keep returns attractive and make the money go further, in stark contrast to the limited ambitions and dodgy maths of a previous Secretary of State, now Leader of the Labour party?
Gregory Barker
Absolutely. We will see far, far more deployment now in the rest of the Parliament than we would have done if we had carried on with Labour’s very expensive, unfit for purpose, form of subsidy. Moreover, there is other exciting news. I am delighted that Sharp, the leading European manufacturer of solar, has announced that subsequent to the reforms, it will move its European manufacturing base from Germany to the UK—a real vindication of our reforms.
Feed-in Tariffs Scheme
Debate between Damian Hinds and Lord Barker of Battle
Gregory Barker
Yes. I think the right hon. Lady will find there a strong welcome from social housing for the proposals we have set out. We are increasing the level of aggregated tariff from 80% to 90%. As the costs come down, it becomes affordable for all consumers to support the roll-out of solar PV on social housing and other mixed-tenure low-income homes. The scheme can now be rolled out at real scale, unlike the cottage-industry, not-fit-for-purpose scheme that we inherited from Labour.
Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con)
For PV businesses in East Hampshire, what message does today’s announcement give in terms of investment predictability and the sustainability of the sector? What are its growth prospects compared with what was envisaged by the former Energy and Climate Change Secretary, who now leads the Opposition?
Gregory Barker
The growth prospects are very strong. There is now real visibility, not just for the next few months or until the next political review. Industry and investors alike can plan for the long term with real confidence, because there is no end date on the scheme. There is no sell-by date for the formula we have established; it is an enduring, long-term scheme—certainly much better than the appalling car crash of a scheme that we inherited from Labour. People can invest with certainty and the predictability of reasonable, sensible returns.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Damian Hinds and Lord Barker of Battle
Gregory Barker
We already have a lot of information on our website, but obviously the scheme has not been launched yet and we still have some way to go. The level of consumer information will be stepped up in the autumn to coincide with the launch, when there will be a call to action on the green deal. We are keen to ensure that pensioners and every other part of society are fully briefed on the opportunities presented by the green deal.
Damian Hinds
Like Macc2020, Energy Alton in my constituency has done a great job in blazing a trail for the green deal. What can be done now to ensure that local small businesses in East Hampshire benefit fully from the business opportunities?
Gregory Barker
My hon. Friend is right to raise the issues of small and medium-sized enterprises, which will be critical to delivering the green deal at a variety of levels in the economy. We have taken measures to reduce the barriers to SMEs, after working closely with them in preparing the green deal legislation, and we continue to engage closely with the small business sector.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Damian Hinds and Lord Barker of Battle(13 years, 8 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Gregory Barker
From 2012, when it opens for business. It is pretty clear. That is why the chairman of the green investment bank, who knows a lot more about business than Members on the Labour Front Bench, was very pleased with the announcement. The £3 billion is an awful lot more than Labour pledged in its manifesto.
Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con)
13. When he plans to respond to the Committee on Climate Change’s fourth carbon budget report.
Simon Wright (Norwich South) (LD)
15. When he plans to respond to the Committee on Climate Change’s fourth carbon budget report.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
The Climate Change Act 2008 requires the Government to set the fourth carbon budget level in law no later than 30 June 2011. I anticipate that a statutory instrument will be laid before the House after the Easer recess.
Damian Hinds
The carbon budget plan is still back-ended, calling for reductions of 4.7% compound after 2030 but only 3.2% before. That is credible so long as investment in research and development is strong at the front end. What more can the Minister do, working with colleagues in Government, to stimulate the development of low-carbon vans and heavy goods vehicles as well as power?
Gregory Barker
My hon. Friend is right: there is a whole range of measures, but transport is also key. The recent spending review announced that the Government have provided up to £400 million for measures to promote the uptake of ultra-low carbon vehicle technologies, including support for consumer incentives, the development of recharging infrastructure and a programme of research and development work, which we continue to add to.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Damian Hinds and Lord Barker of Battle(13 years, 11 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con)
5. What support his Department is providing for community energy schemes; and if he will make a statement.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
The coalition wants local communities to share the business rates generated from large-scale renewable energy projects and to benefit from financial incentives for smaller renewables. DECC has also recently launched the community energy online website to provide advice and support for both communities and local authorities.
Damian Hinds
My hon. Friend will be aware of the greening campaign, which started in Petersfield in my East Hampshire constituency and has now spread to 200 towns and villages. What can he do to help such bottom-up community-based organisations as they go about providing facilitation and practical support to local groups that are looking to develop community energy schemes?
Gregory Barker
The greening campaign in my hon. Friend’s constituency is an excellent initiative. As he knows, community engagement in the energy sector will be vital to our vision of the development of energy in the UK in the coming decades. We are helping communities to access the planning system more effectively through the Localism Bill and giving them more information and advice with the new community energy online website. The finance mechanisms that we are putting in place with feed-in tariffs and the renewable heat incentive will be a great help.