Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Ed Davey and Sheila Gilmore

Thursday 19th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Davey]

I am looking forward to dinner on Friday night. I did not realise it was in my diary, so I had better confess it to my wife.

The renewables target for 2020 was a very sensible one; it was needed to bring an immature industry forward, but I do not think it is needed for 2030. What is most important for 2030 is having an ambitious greenhouse gas reduction target. That is what we need to tackle climate change, and we need to do it in a technology-neutral way, which enables carbon capture and storage, energy efficiency and all low-carbon technologies to come through. I think that is the greenest approach.

[Sheila Gilmore (Edinburgh East) (Lab)]

2. What progress he has made in negotiations with the European Commission on a derogation from the ban on the import or manufacture of incandescent bulbs for people with photo-sensitive health conditions; and if he will make a statement.

Cost of Living: Energy and Housing

Debate between Ed Davey and Sheila Gilmore

Thursday 5th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Davey]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right to make that point: competition, not Government intervention, is the best way of getting prices down and helping people with their living standards.

[Sheila Gilmore (Edinburgh East) (Lab)]

rose—

[Mr Davey]

I will give way to the hon. Lady in order to help her health.

[Sheila Gilmore]

Before the Secretary of State leaves the issue of tax allowances, does he not accept that for many of the lowest-paid workers the reduction in tax was more than outweighed by the reduction in tax credits? Moreover, the cost of this policy benefited higher earners disproportionately. That does not sound to me to be a very Liberal Democrat policy.

[Mr Davey]

I am afraid that the hon. Lady is completely wrong. Higher rate taxpayers did not get the allowance increase. This is one of the fairest tax cuts, because it is focused on the low-paid and people on moderate incomes. I must say that she does not understand how the tax system works.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Ed Davey and Sheila Gilmore

Thursday 27th February 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Davey]

Yes. The UK is extremely well placed to take forward critical low carbon technology. We have all the experience from the oil and gas offshore industry in the North sea. The North sea has some of the largest reserves of carbon dioxide in Europe, and our universities and companies have some of the greatest engineers and scientists who are able to take forward this incredibly low carbon opportunity for the world.

[Sheila Gilmore (Edinburgh East) (Lab)]

T4. The poorest consumers are among those who use prepayment meters. What steps are the Government taking to ensure that they are not charged more than other customers?

Grangemouth Refinery

Debate between Ed Davey and Sheila Gilmore

Wednesday 23rd October 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Davey]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. When we decided to undertake the review of refinery capacity, we did so in the light of a huge amount of evidence that we needed to ensure that our economy was not vulnerable, yet with the developments in the refining industry, there was a danger that it would become increasingly so. He is right that we are importing a lot of refined fuel at the moment, and we need to ensure, as an energy security issue, that we know where our supplies of transport fuel are coming from.

[Sheila Gilmore (Edinburgh East) (Lab)]

Does the Secretary of State not agree that this situation shows the importance of good, mature industrial relations? My right hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh South West (Mr Darling) suggested that it was reminiscent of the 1970s, but I suggest that lockout, threats and ultimatums are more reminiscent of the 1870s. Any new buyer must have a better industrial relations policy, and the Government must encourage that and not undermine it.

[Mr Davey]

I understand the hon. Lady’s concern, and indeed anger, and am sure that in that regard she speaks for many local people. As the Government working with the Scottish Government, we have been, and must remain, balanced in our approach, because our job is to try to get both sides to negotiate. That is the most effective role we can play, so we will continue to do that in as balanced a way as we can.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Ed Davey and Sheila Gilmore

Thursday 6th June 2013 Commons Chamber

[Sheila Gilmore (Edinburgh East) (Lab)]

T4. On some energy issues, such as setting a date for a decarbonisation target, the Government appear to be extremely slow, but on others, such as the exploitation of shale gas, they want to rush ahead at great speed without looking at environmental and safety considerations. Will the Secretary of State commit to looking properly at those considerations before any extraction takes place?

[Mr Davey]

In 2016, we will be the first country to set a decarbonisation target, so the idea that we are being slow on that is preposterous. On shale gas, we are behind other countries—she may have noticed that the US has already gone into it. We are determined to see whether this country can benefit from shale gas, but we will ensure that we protect the environment and take the public with us. That is the right way to get the benefits for the country that shale gas might well offer.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Ed Davey and Sheila Gilmore

Thursday 1st November 2012 Commons Chamber

[Sheila Gilmore (Edinburgh East) (Lab)]

Will the Secretary of State explain whether his energy Minister’s disdain for left-wing bourgeois academics signifies any change in the Government’s commitment to climate change science and, therefore, to seeking the necessary funding?

[Mr Davey]

Left-wing bourgeois academics are obviously welcome to contribute to any discussions in this House, because we want to hear from all sides. I must say that climate change scientists are not noted for their political beliefs; they do their work as scientists. They are providing the evidence that the Government, the country and, I hope, the rest of the world will act on. Their scientific results are extremely disturbing. Most recently we have seen what is happening in the Arctic, where the polar ice cap is melting faster than people had previously thought. That is what the scientists are telling us, and we should take it very seriously.