Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Douglas Carswell and Andrea Leadsom

Thursday 7th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[Mr Douglas Carswell (Clacton) (UKIP)]

T5. I was absolutely delighted when the Minister said in June, at a renewable energy summit, that we were going to remove subsidies. When does she expect onshore and offshore wind subsidies to have disappeared completely?

[Andrea Leadsom]

Projects such as Gunfleet Sands, just off the coast of the hon. Gentleman’s constituency, provide enough clean electricity for over 100,000 homes following hundreds of millions of pounds invested by the developer, much of which was spent locally. I am sure he will have welcomed that. As we have made clear, however, we have to get the right balance between supporting newer technologies such as offshore wind and being tough on subsidies to keep bills as low as possible. We will always be working towards making technologies subsidy-free.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Douglas Carswell and Andrea Leadsom

Thursday 25th June 2015 Commons Chamber

[Andrea Leadsom]

My right hon. Friend is right: this is an exciting new opportunity. It is at a very early stage, but it is a perfect example of the newer technologies that the United Kingdom should support and promote when it has the chance to be a world leader, and we are certainly doing that.

[Mr Douglas Carswell (Clacton) (UKIP)]

The tidal lagoon project in Swansea will undoubtedly generate renewable energy, but the payment that the Government will guarantee for that energy will be three times the current market price. Does the Minister think that that is a good use of public money, and does she think that it is good for our energy competitiveness?

[Andrea Leadsom]

The hon. Gentleman must recognise that a diverse set of energy sources is vital not just to our energy security but to decarbonisation, and to our ability to keep consumer costs down. The Government are looking into the different opportunities presented by different technologies. The price of the lagoon project is a long way away from being agreed, but we are keen to promote new ideas and new technologies, and we want the United Kingdom to be at the forefront of that.