Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent steps his Department has taken to (a) retain and (b) invest in post offices in uncommercial parts of the network.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government has provided over £2.5 billion in funding to support the Post Office network over the past 10 years and is further providing £335 million for the Post Office over the next three years. This package includes funding to ensure the viability of rural and community branches. Since 2019 funding for the network has been maintained at £50 million a year and will remain at the same level until 2025.
Additionally, the Government-set access criteria requires 95% of the population in rural areas to be within three miles of the nearest branch. The Post Office network meets and exceeds this at a national level.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure effective provision of post office services in rural areas.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
The Government has provided over £2.5 billion in funding to support the Post Office network over the past 10 years and is further providing £335 million for the Post Office over the next three years. This package includes funding to ensure the viability of rural and community branches. Since 2019 funding for the network has been maintained at £50 million a year and will remain at the same level until 2025.
Additionally, the Government-set access criteria requires 95% of the population in rural areas to be within three miles of the nearest branch. The Post Office network meets and exceeds this at a national level.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how off-grid energy users will be able to access the one-off support payment towards their energy bills this winter.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Eligible households in Great Britain will receive £100 as a credit on their electricity bill this winter. For Northern Ireland, the Government is working with electricity suppliers to explore how the payment could be delivered via electricity bills.
Households that are eligible for, but do not receive AFP, because they do not have a relationship with an electricity supplier, will receive £100 via the AFP Alternative Fund.
The Energy Bill Support Scheme (EBSS) will provide equivalent support of £400 for energy bills to the small minority of households who will not be reached through the EBSS. This includes those who do not have a domestic electricity meter or a direct relationship with an energy supplier, such as those who live off-grid.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, in addition to the one-off £100 support payment, what steps he will take to ensure that off-grid energy users are able to receive equal support to on-grid households.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS) delivers a £400 non-repayable discount to households with an electricity meter. For those not on standard gas or electricity contracts the EBSS Alternative Fund will provide equivalent support.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to help support the growth of community energy schemes.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Legislative mechanisms already exist which enable community energy groups to produce renewable energy, and the Government has no plans to bring forward further legislative proposals, at this time.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that households living in park homes who do not directly deal with an energy supplier have prompt access to the Energy Bills Support Scheme.
Answered by Graham Stuart
I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for St Albans on 22nd September to Question 48498.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans his Department has to support households in rural areas with the rising cost of domestic heating oil.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Households not on standard gas or electricity contracts, such as those in rural areas, will receive equivalent support to that provided through the Energy Bills Support Scheme, and the Energy Price Guarantee. The Government is working at pace to determine the most practical and tested routes to deliver this support. As part of this, for households who do not use gas for domestic heating, the Government has committed to provide an additional payment of £100 to compensate for the rising costs of other fuels such as coal.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the remaining coal plants at the Drax power station will close in September 2022.
Answered by Greg Hands
The Government has committed to phasing out unabated coal generation in Great Britain by October 2024. Closure of coal units ahead of this date is a commercial decision for the companies involved. The Drax Group, which operates Drax Power Station, has previously announced its intention to close coal units at the site in September 2022.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the maximum number of years is following the cutting down of trees used to make wood pellets for the Drax power station within which replanting must (a) start and (b) match the number of trees felled.
Answered by Greg Hands
The Government does not hold this information. In accordance with the government’s strict sustainability criteria, where biomass is sourced from forests, it needs to be sourced from areas managed in a way that is consistent with sustainable forest management practices, irrespective of location.
Asked by: David Warburton (Independent - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will publish a table showing the number of (a) tree equivalents burnt at the Drax power station and (b) trees planted in the UK in each of the last five years.
Answered by Greg Hands
The Department does not model tree equivalents of biomass used by power generators. Ofgem reports volumes of biomass fuel, such as wood pellets, used by power generators on a per-tonne basis.
UK tree planting statistics, held by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), are reported in terms of area (hectares). The most recent data was published on 30th September (https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/tools-and-resources/statistics/forestry-statistics/forestry-statistics-2021/1-woodland-area-planting/ and https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/documents/8144/Ch1_Woodland_FS2021_kRWbQlW.xlsx). UK tree planting over the past five years was as follows: 6,520 ha (2016-17); 9,050 ha (2017-18), 13,540 ha (2018-19), 13,660 ha (2020-21) and 13,290 ha (2020-21)