Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Dennis Skinner

Main Page: Dennis Skinner (Labour - Bolsover)

Oral Answers to Questions

Dennis Skinner Excerpts
Thursday 24th March 2011

(13 years, 8 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Chris Huhne Portrait Chris Huhne
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As I have just said, our plans clearly envisage an important role for new nuclear. When people visit the departmental website, they can access an interesting pathways model called “My2050”, which allows them to see the effort that would have to be made if we did not have nuclear. We would have to make enormously greater efforts on both renewables and carbon capture and storage. That is physically possible, but the costs would be very substantial.

Dennis Skinner Portrait Mr Dennis Skinner (Bolsover) (Lab)
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The nuclear industry is in serious trouble as a result of what has happened in Japan, we are running out of supplies of North sea oil and fighting all over the place in the middle east is massively increasing the price of oil, so is it not time for king coal again?

Chris Huhne Portrait Chris Huhne
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The hon. Gentleman makes a good point. The entire departmental strategy on energy is to have diverse supplies; it is not to put all our eggs in one basket, be it coal, nuclear or renewables. The reality is that coal will have a role to play in a low-carbon future, as will other diverse supplies.