Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to his oral answers of 28 February to Topical Questions, Official Report, column 640, what the evidential basis is for the Government paying half of everyone's energy bills.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
This winter the Government have paid around half of a typical household’s energy bill, saving around £1,300 through the combination of the Energy Price Guarantee and the £400 payments towards bills. The calculation is based on Ofgem’s standard definition of an average GB household using electricity and gas, paying by direct debit and with “median” consumption which, for example, could be a 2–3-bedroom house, with 2-3 people. The Government has put in place a range of schemes to ensure that all households receive support no matter what type of house they live in or what type of energy they use.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the report by the Social Market Foundation and Public First entitled Fairer, warmer, cheaper: new energy bill support policies to support British households in an age of high prices, published on 8 March 2023, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of that report's (a) conclusions and (b) recommendations.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
The Autumn Statement set out a commitment to work with consumer groups and industry to consider the best approach to consumer protection from April 2024, including options such as social tariffs, as part of wider retail market reforms.
Officials are assessing evidence and options, including published reports, including ‘Fairer, Warmer, Cheaper’ and discussing these with stakeholders, including Citizens Advice, who commissioned this report. The Government will set out its position when this assessment is complete, in time to deliver a new approach from April 2024.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department is taking steps to prevent oil spills on (a) the Faroe-Shetland Channel and (b) other Marine Protected Areas in the region of the proposed Rosebank oil field.
Answered by Graham Stuart
All operators are legally obliged to prevent the occurrence of major accidents (which may include the risk of oil pollution), as well as an obligation to prevent oil spills from their operations, by having suitable management system arrangements in place. These arrangements are inspected by the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment & Decommissioning (OPRED).
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to prevent the development of the Rosebank oil field.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Development proposals for oil fields, such as Rosebank, are a matter for the regulators the North Sea Transition Authority and the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning (OPRED) - following their standard regulatory processes. OPRED’s decision on the Rosebank application will be published in due course.
The UK still needs oil and gas for heating, cooking, transport, to power its industries, and as a key part of Great Britain’s electricity generation during the energy transition. The production of natural gas from the UK Continental Shelf creates less than half as much greenhouse gas as imported liquefied natural gas.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the impact of the approval of the Rosebank oil field on wholesale electricity prices.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Department has made no assessment of the impact of the Rosebank field on wholesale energy prices.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of developing the Rosebank oil field on the Government’s target of protecting at least 30 per cent of the ocean by 2030.
Answered by Graham Stuart
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Norwich South of 1st November 2022 to Question 69714.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of approving the Rosebank oil field on the Government's (a) net zero targets and (b) international climate obligations.
Answered by Graham Stuart
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave the Hon. Member for Norwich South on 1st November 2022 to Question 69713.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many social housing tenants in (a) Liverpool Walton and (b) the UK have not received the warm homes discount due to a energy performance certificate not being in place.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
A property does not need an energy performance certificate to be eligible for the Warm Home Discount. The eligibility for the scheme is detailed on the following page: https://www.gov.uk/the-warm-home-discount-scheme.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on helping to ensure that housing associations apply for energy performance certificates where they are required to allow tenants to benefit from the Warm Homes Discount; and whether his Department plans to take steps to resolve the situation if housing associations do not apply for those certificates in such circumstances.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
Energy performance certificates (EPC) are not required as a matter of course to be eligible for the Warm Home Discount. They are only required in circumstances where the household wants to challenge the data for the age and size of their property held by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), or if there is no VOA record.
The Government have communicated these details to the National Housing Federation and will consider what further actions to take ahead of next winter.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the effect of fuel poverty on disabled people in England.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
The annual, official fuel poverty statistics for England were published on 28 February 2023, and can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-fuel-poverty-statistics-report-2023 (detailed table 26).
The statistics include the effect of high energy prices on fuel poor households, including fuel poor households who have a long-term illness or disability.