Oral Answers to Questions
Ed Miliband Excerpts(3 weeks, 1 day ago)
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Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Since the last oral questions in March, the Government have consented to the Rampion 2 offshore wind farm, creating 4,000 jobs; reached the final investment decision on the HyNet carbon capture, utilisation and storage cluster, creating 2,000 jobs; invested £300 million, through Great British Energy, in UK clean energy supply chains; shortlisted 27 hydrogen companies for hydrogen allocation round 2; and created a new £100 million fusion investment fund. This Government are building the clean energy future in Britain.
Jamie Stone
The reason I was here on that Saturday when Parliament was recalled is because some of the mightiest structures in the North sea were made from British steel at the Nigg yard. On the question of renewables, may I ask the Secretary of State what we are doing about getting out the skills to fabricate floating offshore wind structures in the United Kingdom?
Ed Miliband
That is very much part of our plans. As the hon. Gentleman will know, in March we announced the provision of more than £55 million for the expansion of Port of Cromarty Firth to create offshore wind supply chains in this country, and last week, along with GB Energy, we announced that investment of £300 million in supply chains. We are determined not just to generate offshore wind in Britain, but to take advantage of the huge economic opportunity that it represents.
Christine Jardine
I hear what the Secretary of State is saying, but Scotland’s declining oil and gas industries have lost 40% of their jobs in the past decade, and today Grangemouth has warned that it may have to pause important projects involving a switch to greener and more sustainable forms of energy because of what it describes as soaring energy bills and the pressures of income tax. We know that Grangemouth needs investment, but it also needs more than the Government are doing at the moment. What intervention are they planning to protect jobs and the communities that could be hollowed out if Grangemouth is not saved?
Ed Miliband
As the hon. Lady will know, we inherited this situation from the last Government, but we set aside £200 million to build the future in Grangemouth and we are working closely with the Scottish Government on precisely that, in a Government-to-Government collaboration. As for the hon. Lady’s wider question about industrial energy prices, we should obviously look at what different sectors are saying.
A lot of nonsense is being talked about steel. UK Steel has said categorically that the difference between our prices and those of continental Europe is a result of our reliance on natural gas power generation. [Interruption.] Opposition Members say “Rubbish”, but that is what UK Steel has said, and that is why our clean power mission is right for families and right for business.
Brian Leishman (Alloa and Grangemouth) (Lab)
Today marks the end of more than a century of refining at Grangemouth. Scotland is once again a victim of industrial vandalism and devastation—and I do not want anyone in this Chamber to dare mention a “just transition”, because we all know that the Conservatives when they were in power, and the Scottish National party currently in Holyrood, have done nothing to avert this catastrophic decision. I put it to the Secretary of State that during the general election campaign the Labour leadership said that they would step in and save the jobs at the refinery. What has changed, and why have we not done the sensible thing for Scotland’s energy security?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is talking about a very important issue, and Grangemouth has a very important role in Scotland. What I will say to him and to others is that as soon as this Government saw the situation that they had inherited, they put money in to help the workers, and they have made that huge investment commitment of £200 million, working hand in hand with the Scottish Government, so that we can build the future in Grangemouth. We are absolutely committed to building the future for Grangemouth communities, and we look forward to working with my hon. Friend and other Members on both sides of the House to do that.
Euan Stainbank (Falkirk) (Lab)
Yesterday was International Workers’ Memorial Day. At a service this weekend in Falkirk, a Grangemouth refinery worker rightly called for oil and gas workers’ skills not to be considered obsolete, but utterly essential for the just transition. What consideration have Ministers given to the urgent policy recommendations in Project Willow to provide accelerated investment in clean energy infrastructure and the jobs it promises for Grangemouth?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend, who is also a really powerful advocate for his constituents, is absolutely right. Project Willow was left on the shelf by the previous Government. We put the money in to take Project Willow forward and we are now going to implement it. Absolutely crucial to that is ensuring the skills of oil and gas workers are properly used in the future, including with the skills passport which also lay dormant under the previous Government and which we are powering ahead with.
Claire Young (Thornbury and Yate) (LD)
Through my work on the Select Committee, I have heard repeated concerns from industry leaders that existing workers in their 50s and 60s see no point in retraining because they believe they will see out their careers supporting old technologies. That has a knock-on impact on young entrants to the workforce, who have traditionally learnt their skills from more experienced workers. Will the Secretary of State outline what steps he is taking to incentivise retraining to support growth in the renewable energy sector?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Lady raises a really important point. That is why we are working with the Department for Education to make sure we do not just have a clean power plan that will help to create hundreds of thousands of jobs across the country and invest in supply chains, which I talked about earlier, but crucially offer opportunities for younger workers and inspire them about the possibilities that are available, and create opportunities for older workers, too. All that work is ongoing in Government.
Mohammad Yasin (Bedford) (Lab)
Sarah Dyke (Glastonbury and Somerton) (LD)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
In 2025-26 alone we will upgrade up to 300,000 homes through the warm homes plan and other measures. That is more than double the number of homes upgraded last year. Later this year we will set out more detail of our warm homes plan to upgrade up to 5 million homes with energy-efficient technologies such as heat pumps, solar and insulation in order to deliver warmer homes and lower bills.
Tessa Munt
I recognise that there are very good schemes for those on lower incomes and that heating homes is really important. For many older properties and properties in conservation areas, as fast as we heat the homes, the heat just goes out the windows. In my area, where there are lots of older homes and homes in conservation areas, it is near impossible to get permission to apply double or triple glazing. Can the Secretary of State sort out this tension between having warm homes and older homes, particularly when he is trying so hard to ensure that homes meet the C grade rating for energy performance certificates by 2030? This needs to be sorted out with planning departments.
Ed Miliband
The hon. Lady raises a really important point. I am constantly on the look-out for small measures and large in the planning system that can obstruct the sensible energy efficiency measures, such as solar panels, that will make all the difference. I say to her and other Members of the House that if they have specific examples of barriers or interpretations of guidelines that are getting in the way—sometimes is not about the rules but about local councils’ interpretations of them—please bring them to our attention, because we are constantly trying to make it easier to make such upgrades happen.
Sarah Dyke
Earl, a social housing tenant from Glastonbury, is disabled and has faced multiple barriers that have prevented him from self-funding improvements to the sustainability and energy efficiency of his home, in order to help him reduce his energy poverty and improve his health. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that social housing tenants receive energy upgrades in their homes, and in particular those living in older housing stock, where upgrades might be more complex to achieve?
Ed Miliband
It sounds as though the hon. Lady is raising an individual case, and if she wants to draw it to our attention, she can do so. On the more general point, I believe that her local authority has received £6 million as part of the warm homes local grant, so it would be worth talking to it about this. Again—I am sure that I speak for the Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, my hon. Friend the Member for Peckham (Miatta Fahnbulleh), on this—where there are specific issues about how particular schemes are working, please do draw them to our attention and we will seek to act on them.
Julia Buckley (Shrewsbury) (Lab)
Royal Shrewsbury hospital in my constituency was delighted to receive a £450,000 investment for solar panels, which will see our local trust save more than £1 million by reducing its energy bills in the lifetime of the project. Will the Secretary of State join me in celebrating this excellent start to our nationalised Great British Energy company and update the House on the next steps to get us towards that mission?
Ed Miliband
I do join my hon. Friend in that. I say to all Opposition Members who voted against GB Energy that many of them will now be getting solar panels on schools and hospitals in their constituencies. Let all their constituents know that those are local MPs who opposed cutting bills for schools and hospitals in their own constituencies.
Alice Macdonald (Norwich North) (Lab/Co-op)
I welcome the £17 million of Government funding for Norwich’s Labour-led city council to improve energy efficiency in homes, which will help tackle fuel poverty and provide much more comfort. Will the Secretary of State welcome Norwich Labour’s leadership on this issue and set out how we will provide more funding to local councils so that they can go further, faster?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend raises a really important point about the crucial role of local authorities in relation to these issues. One of the things that my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister has done is devolve more funding to combined authorities on this. We want to go further, including in relation to local authorities, because it is local authorities—including my hon. Friend’s, which I congratulate—who know best the particular needs of their own localities, and they are a key part of the answer to the energy efficiency upgrade that we need.
Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)
Markus Campbell-Savours (Penrith and Solway) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Last week, 60 Governments and more than 50 global businesses gathered in London for the first global summit on the future of energy security with the International Energy Agency. I heard from country after country the hard-headed case for clean energy’s role in delivering energy security to free us from the global fossil fuel markets controlled by petrostates and dictators. I also heard from many clean energy businesses that Britain was the place where they wanted to invest because of the clarity and speed of this Government’s mission.
Markus Campbell-Savours
Homes in rural areas experience some of the highest rates of fuel poverty in the UK. Rural properties are less energy efficient than the national average and many are simply harder to insulate. Will the Minister confirm that my constituents in Penrith and Solway will see the additional challenge of rurality reflected in the Government’s ambitious warm homes plan?
Ed Miliband
One hundred per cent—my hon. Friend is absolutely right about that. The Minister for Energy Consumers and I often discuss how we have to ensure that our warm homes plan takes account of the particular needs and challenges facing rural areas.
Andrew Bowie (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (Con)
Voters
“feel they’re being asked to make financial sacrifices…when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal… Present policy solutions are inadequate and…therefore unworkable… The current approach isn’t working… Any strategy based on either ‘phasing out’ fossil fuels in the short term or limiting consumption is a strategy doomed to fail.”
Does the Secretary of State agree with his former boss Tony Blair?
Ed Miliband
The shadow Minister talks about the Tony Blair Institute report. I agree with a lot of what it says. It says that we should move ahead on carbon capture and storage, which the Government are doing. It says that we should move ahead on the role of artificial intelligence, which the Government are doing. It says that we should move ahead on nuclear, which the Government are doing. The shadow Minister said only three weeks ago, after his party dropped its net zero policy—this will surprise people, Mr Speaker—
Mr Speaker
Order. No, Secretary of State. This is topical questions; I do not need a full statement.
Andrew Bowie
To be honest, I was looking forward to hearing what I said a few weeks ago, Mr Speaker. It is okay for the Secretary of State to admit when he is wrong. As Tony Blair said yesterday, this strategy is “doomed to fail.” Why can the Secretary of State not see what the GMB and Tony Blair see, which is that clean power 2030 is doomed to fail and it is time for a change of approach?
Ed Miliband
That is not what the report says. The shadow Minister is talking absolute nonsense. The point I was going to make was that he said:
“Look, nobody’s saying that net zero was a mistake. Net zero in the round was the eminently sensible thing to do.”
Those are not my words but his. Some people say that the Tory party has only one policy. Actually, it has two: it is against net zero and, through the shadow Minister, it is for net zero.
Mr Jonathan Brash (Hartlepool) (Lab)
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend asks an important question. New nuclear is absolutely part of the energy mix. That is why we announced important reforms to the national policy statement. The previous such substantive reform was based on the one I published as Energy Secretary in 2009. We have updated the statement in order to enable new nuclear to be built right across the country, including in his constituency.
Liz Jarvis (Eastleigh) (LD)
Ed Miliband
The hon. Lady asks an important question. I was in touch with the National Energy System Operator yesterday following the events in Spain and Portugal—the UK was not affected. NESO and my Department take this incredibly seriously. I would also add, given that there has been some comment on this, that we should not jump to conclusions about what happened. Let us see what happened and the reasons for it, and then learn the lessons.
Baggy Shanker (Derby South) (Lab/Co-op)
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is right: this clean energy transition is about creating jobs. I was delighted to open the factory, which is creating 200 jobs and is a £40 million investment, manufacturing cylinders for heat pumps. This is an opportunity that this Government are going to seize for Britain.
Lee Anderson (Ashfield) (Reform)
Ed Miliband
The hon. Gentleman never ceases to amaze me, and not in a good way. Reform has made its decision; I am not sure what the Conservatives’ position is. Cheap, clean, home-grown power is the answer for Britain, because it gives us energy security and frees us from the petrostates and dictators. We are in favour of it; Reform is against it. Goodness knows where the Conservative party is.
Ruth Cadbury (Brentford and Isleworth) (Lab)
Monica Harding (Esher and Walton) (LD)
My constituents continue to face higher electricity bills—among the highest in the country at approximately £961 per year. One of my local hairdressers tells me that their electricity has gone up from £150 to £450 a month. Will the Government commit to bolder policies by easing restrictions on solar and wind power and driving investment in renewables to help struggling businesses?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Lady is 100% right—clean, home-grown power is the answer—so that is an unequivocal yes.
Noah Law (St Austell and Newquay) (Lab)
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is right: there is a long-standing issue around industrial energy prices. The key is getting off the rollercoaster of fossil fuel markets, because just as family finances were ruined in the cost of living crisis, it is the same in relation to business finances and public finances. It is an essential part of the answer.
Susan Murray (Mid Dunbartonshire) (LD)
In my constituency, many elderly and disabled people face very high energy bills due to essential medical equipment and heating needs. What support are the Government providing to ensure that these households are protected from the high cost of electricity?
Lauren Edwards (Rochester and Strood) (Lab)
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend raises a really important issue about interconnectors. It is something I have been talking to the regulator about, particularly in relation to France, and indeed to my French counterpart, Marc Ferracci, who was in London for our international energy summit. I am happy for the Department to engage with her and tell her about the work we are doing on that issue.
Jerome Mayhew (Broadland and Fakenham) (Con)
During the general election, the Secretary of State repeatedly promised my constituents that if they voted Labour, their energy prices would be reduced by £300—not by “up to” £300. Will the Secretary of State repeat that promise at the Dispatch Box?
Ed Miliband
We said we would cut bills by up to £300, and that is absolutely what we are determined to do.
Ed Miliband
The hon. Gentleman says that bills have gone up, but let me give him a little basic lesson: they have gone up because we are exposed to fossil fuel prices. The only way to bring them down is by having sources of clean, home-grown power that we control.
Rachel Blake (Cities of London and Westminster) (Lab/Co-op)
Dr Andrew Murrison (South West Wiltshire) (Con)
When will the Government decide whether to support the UK-Morocco power project?
Ed Miliband
I know the right hon. Gentleman has an important interest in this project. We continue to have discussions with Xlinks and obviously we are happy to brief him on those discussions.
Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)
Unlike Conservative Members, I really welcomed the £200 million investment last week. It will be integral to creating the good jobs of the future in constituencies that are developing key technologies for offshore wind, like my constituency of Stafford, Eccleshall and the villages. With that in mind, will the Minister and the Secretary of State visit my constituency to see GE Vernova and the hard work that it is doing there?
Ed Miliband
Yes is the answer; I look forward to it. My hon. Friend is 100% right: this is about the jobs of the future. Conservative Members might want to turn their back on them; we will not.
Sir Julian Lewis (New Forest East) (Con)
As we need some oil and gas while on the road to a clean energy economy, does it not make sense to produce our own, rather than importing it from other countries and thus increasing the global carbon footprint?
Melanie Onn (Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes) (Lab)
MPs across the Humber region are united in support for the Viking carbon capture, usage and storage project. Can the Government give an update on any progress with track 2 programmes?
Ed Miliband
As with Acorn, we think Viking is a really important project. I am very proud of the progress we made on track 1, and we are obviously looking at both Viking and Acorn in the spending review.
Tim Farron (Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)
Will the Secretary of State ensure that GB Energy has a focused plan to deliver, and to help the 1,500 farmers in my constituency to tap the latent energy in their becks and rivers, so that we can support farming as well as the battle against climate change?
David Mundell (Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale) (Con)
When I was at the Scotland Office, I was regularly lobbied by retired senior executives from the electricity industry who wanted to state their concerns about how long it would take to reboot the network in Scotland if there was a major outage. Obviously, I sought the necessary assurances from those running the network, but in the light of what has happened in Spain and Portugal, I would be reassured if Ministers sought those assurances again.
Ed Miliband
My Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, my hon. Friend the Member for Rutherglen (Michael Shanks), and I regularly discuss this issue, which relates to one of the first duties of Government. I reassure the right hon. Gentleman that not only is this a focus for Government, but we will look at what happened in Spain and Portugal to see if there are any lessons to be learned about our resilience.
Mr Speaker
Order. Mr Moon, please. You will not get called again if you carry on like that. I am sure the Minister will know the answer.
Ed Miliband
I am delighted to remind the House that it was the Conservative party that left us with energy insecurity, and we are never going to leave this country vulnerable in the way that it did.
James McMurdock (South Basildon and East Thurrock) (Reform)
As my hon. Friend the Member for Ashfield (Lee Anderson) said, the Government seem to have a three-point plan. Point one is to cover farmland in solar panels, and point two is to block out the sun. What is point three?
Wendy Chamberlain (North East Fife) (LD)
I have been contacted by several constituents who have experienced failed ECO4 scheme installations. What support is there for constituents when installations go wrong? Are rogue installers getting paid for work that is not completed properly? What steps are being taken to address such failures?
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim) (DUP)
In the 1970s, global warmists wanted to put black dust on the Arctic to block the sun. Now the Minister wants to put black dust on clouds to block the sun again. Is his plan not bonkers? £50 million of taxpayer’s money has been spent, which will only put up energy prices even further.
Ed Miliband
This is like conspiracy theories gone mad. I feel like we have entered a whacky world. Let us keep our eyes on the prize. As a country, we are vulnerable because of our exposure to fossil fuels. This Government have one mission alone: to get clean, home-grown power, so that we take back control.
Energy Security Summit
Ed Miliband Excerpts(3 weeks, 2 days ago)
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The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
On 24 and 25 April 2025, at Lancaster House, the UK Government partnered with the International Energy Agency to convene the first global summit on the future of energy security.
The Prime Minister and the President of the European Commission addressed the summit, delivering the message that energy security is national security and depends on co-operation with others, acting together to seize the opportunity of the clean energy transition. The summit was represented by almost 60 countries, more than 50 global businesses as well as non-governmental organisations and civil society groups from around the world.
Our starting point for this summit is that in an unstable and uncertain world, there can be no national or international security without energy security. In the years since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, we have been reminded in the UK, and indeed across Europe and the world, of a simple truth: that as long as energy can be weaponised against us, our countries and our citizens are vulnerable and exposed.
This summit marked an important moment for countries to come together and discuss what the shifting global landscape means for how we deliver energy security in this era. Many participants emphasised the importance of the energy transition and how this can enable a more secure and affordable system, noting our vulnerability to price shocks from fossil fuel markets.
Political and industry leaders from around the world discussed the diverse energy security challenges faced by different countries, and how energy in all its forms is the basis of human and economic development. Achieving secure, affordable, and sustainable energy for all remains a fundamental priority in the years to come. Many stressed that multilateral co-operation between countries, as well as with international organisations, industry and civil society, is key to tackling shared challenges and ensuring a secure energy system.
The Prime Minister announced an initial £300 million investment, ahead of the spending review, through Great British Energy, in order to win global offshore wind investment in the UK and create thousands of jobs, and a major carbon capture and storage network is ready for construction—boosting energy security and the Government’s plan for change.
At the summit, the Government also established a new mission focused on strengthening global supply chains through the UK-led global clean power alliance. The GCPA will bring together the global north and south, and will draw on and share the UK’s world-leading experience of pursuing clean power by 2030 to speed up the global clean energy transition.
Our decision to co-host this summit reflects the UK’s determination to go the extra mile as a convenor on the world stage—because it is in our national interest. Clean energy is the economic opportunity of the 21st century, and the leadership we are showing is about seizing the jobs and growth for Britain, and making the UK a clean energy superpower.
[HCWS606]
Oral Answers to Questions
Ed Miliband Excerpts(2 months ago)
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Debbie Abrahams (Oldham East and Saddleworth) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Our warm homes plan will upgrade up to 5 million homes with technologies such as heat pumps, solar panels and insulation, helping families to lower bills and improve their homes. Last week we allocated £1.8 billion to local authorities and social housing providers to help low-income households and social housing tenants. We will publish further plans following the spending review.
Euan Stainbank
The warm homes plan delivers a welcome uplift in resources for domestic energy efficiency. Failures by Governments, energy companies and local authorities over a number of years have left my constituents paying huge energy costs, with poor connectivity, failure to install smart meters or smart meters not working when they are installed, and not-fit-for-purpose electric heating systems in the Braes villages. Does the Minister agree that the Government must do all they can to end fuel poverty, and will he meet me to discuss how to hold accountable those who are responsible for the ongoing issues in my constituency?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend raises a number of important issues. It is about having a tough regulator in Ofgem, it is about smart meters that work, and it is about every decision the Government take seeking to tackle fuel poverty. That is why I was incredibly pleased that we announced the extension of the warm homes discount to an extra 2.7 million families, with an extra £150 next winter to help families. That is what this Labour Government are all about.
Debbie Abrahams
I welcome the energy efficiency measures that my right hon. Friend mentions, which will really make a difference to many families in the future, but what can the Government and energy providers do to help families struggling to pay their energy bills today?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend speaks with great expertise about these issues. She will know that the Minister for Energy Consumers, my hon. Friend the Member for Peckham (Miatta Fahnbulleh), put in place with the energy companies £500 million this winter to help families struggling with their bills. We also want to see Ofgem proceed with the plan to relieve the debts that many families face, because the debt overhang from the cost of living crisis that we saw after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine still blights many families in our country. If we move forward on all those fronts, we can tackle these issues.
Tim Farron (Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)
I strongly support all efforts to increase energy efficiency and bring down bills. Is the Secretary of State concerned about the potential unforeseen consequences of raising the minimum level of energy performance certificates to C for long-term rented accommodation but not doing so for short-term lets and owned properties? Will that not create an incentive in communities such as ours for people to go to Airbnb or second home ownership, rather than providing affordable homes for local people?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Gentleman raises an important issue. I believe I am right in saying—I was checking with the Minister for Energy Consumers—that as part of the consultation on energy efficiency, we are looking at the issue of short-term lets, which has been raised in the past. He is right to draw attention to what we are doing here, because this measure, which the last Government proposed and then backed away from—a pattern we are seeing quite a lot at the moment—will take up to 1 million families out of poverty. It is a basic principle: if someone is renting a home and they pay their rent on time, they have a right to live in decent, warm accommodation.
Mr Louie French (Old Bexley and Sidcup) (Con)
Dan Tomlinson (Chipping Barnet) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
We are driving forward at speed to deliver clean power by 2030. Last week, the Government introduced the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which will enable the biggest expansion of the grid for generations, sweeping away the connection delays and the queue that held us back for too long under the last Government and reforming the planning system to speed up delivery. We have also laid out for the first time legislation to provide households near new or upgraded pylons £250 a year off their energy bills for 10 years, as part of our commitment to delivering meaningful benefits for communities hosting clean energy infrastructure.
Dan Tomlinson
Does the Secretary of State agree that community energy has a vital role to play in the transition to cleaner and greener power? Will he accept an invitation to come to my constituency in north London to visit Community Energy Barnet, which is working on one of the largest community energy projects in the country?
Ed Miliband
I always like visiting north London, and I would very much like to accept an invitation from my hon. Friend. He makes a really serious and important point about community energy. If we look at Germany and Denmark, we see that they have done much better on community energy than us. Great British Energy has an important role to play in this, and we will say more about that in the coming weeks.
Sir Oliver Dowden (Hertsmere) (Con)
Does the Secretary of State share my concern about reports of persistent misconduct by Drax, regarding cutting down old-growth forest and burning it at its power station? To be clear, this is a company that chops down pristine forest, ships it halfway across the world to burn it in the United Kingdom and claims that it is sustainable. Will he look again at the large amounts of subsidies that have been approved by this Government for that company?
Ed Miliband
I do not know whether the right hon. Gentleman, for whom I have great respect, was present when the Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, my hon. Friend the Member for Rutherglen (Michael Shanks), made a statement on precisely that issue. On the impact on bills, he will be delighted to know that under the new arrangements that this Government agreed, there has been an absolute transformation in the scale of subsidy to Drax; it will be halved. There is also a windfall tax when its profits go above a certain level, which I am sure the right hon. Gentleman is in favour of, and there are much higher standards of sustainability. He is right that we should take these issues seriously.
Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Lab)
The Conservative party abandoned the economy, the NHS, the justice system and immigration, and now it is joining its Reform collaborators and other climate change deniers in the dunce’s corner. Does the Secretary of State agree that, unlike this Government, who recognise the triple benefit of the 2030 goal—energy security, a transition to renewables, and job creation—the Conservative party has no solutions for 21st century Britain?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend should not be so shy and retiring. He makes a really important point. I listened to the interim shadow Secretary of State, the hon. Member for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine (Andrew Bowie), on the radio this morning. He made net zero 2050 sound like a target dreamed up by me, but it is not. It was Theresa May, the former Conservative Prime Minister, who legislated for net zero by 2050. The hon. Member was her Parliamentary Private Secretary at the time—he was supposed to be the man implementing it. She set the target because it was the right thing to do, so that we can have cleaner home-grown energy, get the jobs, and protect future generations.
Seamus Logan (Aberdeenshire North and Moray East) (SNP)
The plans for a green generator at the Peterhead power station in my constituency are shovel-ready, but they depend on approval for the Acorn project at St Fergus. On 12 November last year, the Minister for Industry stated in response to a question from me that more information would be available on the track 2 projects “in the coming months.” Given that four months have passed, can the Secretary of State provide an updated timescale and outline what the next steps will be?
Ed Miliband
I support the Acorn project; it is really important. For reasons that the hon. Member will understand, the right time to make decisions will be at the spending review in June.
Sarah Edwards (Tamworth) (Lab)
Richard Baker (Glenrothes and Mid Fife) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
The £21.7 billion of funding to which we committed in October will kick-start the carbon capture, usage and storage industry, supporting thousands of jobs in our industrial heartlands through the east coast and HyNet clusters. We continue to engage with important future projects, such as Acorn in Scotland and Viking in the Humber, and we will make further announcements following the spending review.
Matthew Patrick
As my right hon. Friend will recognise, Merseyside is a clean energy pioneer, a hub of carbon capture and hydrogen technology. The climate emergency is the challenge of our generation, and that challenge will be met only through the collective endeavour of communities across our country, including mine in Wirral West. How are the Government helping our communities to deliver good, local energy projects?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is entirely right about this. We have learned over the last decade and more that this is the biggest jobs opportunity of the 21st century. Nowhere is that more true than in the investments we are making in carbon capture, usage and storage, and I am confident that my hon. Friend’s constituents will benefit. A couple of weeks ago, the Confederation of British Industry produced an important report that showed that last year, the net zero economy grew three times faster than the economy as a whole. The House should let that sink in, because it tells us that if we turn our back on the net zero economy, we turn our back on business, jobs and investment.
Richard Baker
Does my right hon. Friend agree that there is huge potential for carbon capture and storage to play a key role in our green energy ambitions for Scotland? As we look towards the spending review, does he agree that the Acorn project presents an excellent and efficient opportunity to invest in CCUS, and to reduce the carbon impact of industries across Scotland, because it will repurpose existing pipelines?
Ed Miliband
I congratulate my hon. Friend. He is a fantastic advocate for the Acorn project, of which we are hugely supportive. Track 1 projects were agreed in last year’s Budget—a fiscal event, a fiscal moment—and the Government are considering those projects ahead of the next phase of the spending review, which will come in June; but I do not think that anyone doubts the potential value of the Acorn project, not just to Scotland but to the whole United Kingdom.
Sir Roger Gale (Herne Bay and Sandwich) (Con)
No one who cares about the future of our children and our grandchildren will gainsay the importance of carbon capture, but does the Secretary of State not understand that he is undermining that good work—notwithstanding his answer to my right hon. Friend the Member for Hertsmere (Sir Oliver Dowden)—by continuing to subsidise the Drax power station, which is cutting down forests in Canada, turning the wood into pellets, and shipping it thousands of miles across the Atlantic to burn here? That makes nonsense of what he is trying to achieve.
Ed Miliband
I do not agree with the right hon. Gentleman, for whom I have great respect. The situation that we inherited from the last Government meant that we had to consider matters such as security of supply and how we could secure the best deal for bill payers. That is what we did, and that is why we made the statement that we made on Drax. On longer term, however, the right hon. Gentleman is entirely right. We need to move away from unabated biomass and consider all the possibilities to enable us to move towards net zero, and that is what this Government are doing.
Jess Brown-Fuller (Chichester) (LD)
Will the Secretary of State join me in congratulating the six students from Bourne community college who came to Westminster yesterday to present their report on the future of hydrogen storage as a net zero approach to aviation? Does he agree that students engaging with science, technology, engineering and mathematics are excited about the potential of clean power and carbon capture, and that proper funding for STEM in our schools will provide us with the next generation of scientists and engineers who can help us to achieve these goals?
Ed Miliband
I join the hon. Lady in warmly congratulating the six students from her constituency whom she mentioned. I am sure that I speak for all Members of the House when I say that when we meet young people who are engaged in the potential of clean energy technology to transform our country and our world, it is an incredibly important reminder, both about its potential for jobs, and about our duties to future generations.
Edward Morello (West Dorset) (LD)
The Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change has made it clear that by 2050, we need to be removing 10 billion tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere every year if we are to stand a chance of keeping below the 1.5° target. It is clear that carbon removal, and not just carbon capture and storage, will play a critical role in our avoiding a climate disaster. In the face of the Conservative party once again embracing climate denialism, what steps will the Government take to support the research, development and deployment of carbon removal technologies to ensure that British companies become leaders in this emerging sector?
Ed Miliband
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. I can tell him that the Minister for Industry held a roundtable with a whole range of industry voices on this precise topic last week. He is right about this issue. There is scepticism about CCS in some parts of academia and elsewhere. All the evidence that I have seen from the Climate Change Committee, the IPCC and others, including the International Energy Agency, is that CCS technology has a crucial role to play on something like 20% of emissions. He is also right to say that carbon removal is the next stage of that journey, and it is something that my Department is heavily engaged in.
Mr Andrew Snowden (Fylde) (Con)
Anneliese Midgley (Knowsley) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
For this Government, good pay and conditions for workers and the role of trade unions must be at the heart of the renewable energy sector, because that is the only route to a fair transition. Since we came to office, EDF Renewables has announced recognition agreements with four major trade unions. We applaud it for its decision, and we want others to follow suit. Through the Office for Clean Energy Jobs, we are also working with industry and trade unions to support fair pay, terms and conditions in the sector.
Anneliese Midgley
I thank my right hon. Friend for his answer. The Employment Rights Bill is an historic step forward for workers, but these rights must go hand in hand with good jobs. What action is he taking to strengthen the UK’s manufacturing capacity and supply chains to ensure that communities such as mine in Knowsley benefit from the transition to net zero?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is a brilliant advocate for her constituency, and on this issue of manufacturing jobs. If we look at what this Government are doing—from GB Energy to the national wealth fund and the clean industry bonus—we see that this Government are determined to ensure that we manufacture in Britain. We care about where things are made, and we will make those good manufacturing jobs happen.
Steff Aquarone (North Norfolk) (LD)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Britain produces 1% of global climate emissions. China is the world’s largest emitter, yet no UK Energy Secretary has visited it in eight years to make the case for it to do more. That is why I have been in Beijing making the case for climate action. Engagement, not negligence, is what fighting for Britain looks like. On climate, as on so much else, this Government believe that Britain can only protect our national interests by engaging on the international stage.
Steff Aquarone
The Bacton energy hub in my constituency is undergoing a green transition, which I support because I believe in protecting our natural environment and boosting our economy through net zero—two things the Conservatives seem to have abandoned. Green hydrogen at Bacton needs wind power to be brought in from the coast. Will the Secretary of State help to make that happen, and will he visit Bacton with me to see the potential for himself?
Ed Miliband
This, among many others, is a very, very important potential project and the hon. Gentleman is right to make the case for it. Green hydrogen is absolutely part of our energy mix in the future.
Gurinder Singh Josan (Smethwick) (Lab)
Andrew Bowie (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (Con)
Last month, with surprisingly little fanfare from the Department or the Secretary of State, the Climate Change Committee published carbon budget 7. Among the more eyewatering recommendations was the figure put on the cost of meeting the obligations: £319 billion over the next 15 years. Frontloading that will be a net cost to industry every year until 2050. Is that exorbitant cost the reason that he cancelled his Department’s review, commissioned by his predecessor, into the whole-systems cost of net zero?
Ed Miliband
I deeply regret the direction in which the hon. Gentleman is going. The Climate Change Committee does incredibly important work. We will look at CB7, but the biggest cost we face as a country is if we do not act on the climate crisis. That is what would leave hundreds of billions of pounds of costs to future generations.
Andrew Bowie
The right hon. Gentleman might be content with signing our energy sovereignty over to the People’s Republic of China, and he might be happy with his Government’s arbitrary targets and bans, pushing bills up and leaving us more reliant on importing and costing jobs, but we think it is time for a new approach, as the Leader of the Opposition said this morning, focused on security and cost to the consumer, not pie-in-the-sky targets with no plan to reach them. Will he recommission the review into the whole-systems cost? If not, what is he trying to hide?
Ed Miliband
It is the Tory party that has an energy surrender policy: surrendering us to fossil fuel markets controlled by petrostates and dictators. The Tories would keep us locked in to fossil fuels, threaten billions of pounds of investment in net zero and leave our children and grandchildren a terrible legacy. That is the Conservative party in 2025: anti-jobs, anti-growth, anti-business and anti-future generations.
Andrew Cooper (Mid Cheshire) (Lab)
Edward Morello (West Dorset) (LD)
In the recent advice for its seventh carbon budget, the Climate Change Committee highlighted the urgency of ensuring cheaper electricity so that households can transition away from gas heating. When will the Government act to improve energy security and reduce costs for the households seeking to adopt low-carbon heating by reforming policy costs on energy bills?
Ed Miliband
As we discussed earlier, the CCC raised an important issue that we need to look at. The key question on this so-called rebalancing is that it must be looked at in the context of understanding the principled case, while also ensuring that if we go down that or another route, we do so in a way that is fair. That is the work that my Department is engaged on.
Chris Murray (Edinburgh East and Musselburgh) (Lab)
Ed Miliband
Yes, that sounds really good. Community energy is a crucial part of our energy future.
Sir Edward Leigh (Gainsborough) (Con)
Ed Miliband
The right hon. Gentleman and I do not necessarily agree on everything, but on this we do agree. The transformation of the West Burton site from a fossil fuel-fired power station to a fusion power plant is an incredibly exciting project, and we should all be battling for it.
Chris Kane (Stirling and Strathallan) (Lab)
Mike Martin (Tunbridge Wells) (LD)
Ed Miliband
The hon. Gentleman raises a really important issue. Rolling out electric car infrastructure is incredibly important. If he writes to my Department, we will ensure that he gets the best possible reply.
Chris Hinchliff (North East Hertfordshire) (Lab)
Will Ministers consider exercising the community electricity right within the Infrastructure Act 2015 to require commercial renewable energy developers to offer communities the opportunity to part-own schemes developed in their area?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend raises an important matter. As an energy nerd, I am really interested in this 2015 power, which, despite my nerdery, I did not actually know about. We are actively looking at this really important power, which was put in place by the previous Government.
Ben Obese-Jecty (Huntingdon) (Con)
In response to a written question to me last week, the Minister confirmed that no nationally significant infrastructure projects have been consented to that will use greater than 50% best and most versatile agricultural land. In my constituency, the East Park Energy solar farm is close to 75%, but the overarching national policy statement for energy states at paragraph 5.11.34:
“The Secretary of State should ensure that applicants do not site their scheme on the best and most versatile agricultural land without justification.”
Can the Minister confirm whether nearly 1,500 acres of best and most versatile land is too much good-quality agricultural land to sacrifice?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Gentleman will know that any nationally significant project goes through a proper planning process, and it would not be right for me to comment on that. None the less, I am sure that the decision makers will be looking closely at the issues that he has raised.
Claire Young (Thornbury and Yate) (LD)
Although the Leader of the Opposition thinks that achieving net zero is impossible without “bankrupting us”, investment in low carbon energy for communities such as Severn Beach in my constituency could create valuable skilled jobs. What steps will the Government take to ensure that the area around the River Severn will get the investment that it needs to realise its potential?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Lady is absolutely right on that. The Opposition are off to the “Wacky Races” when it comes to net zero. We in the Labour party know the truth: net zero is the economic opportunity of the 21st century and, under this Government, we will seize it.
Melanie Onn (Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes) (Lab)
Carbon capture, utilisation and storage is the central plank of the Humber 2030 vision. Does the Secretary of State have any plans to meet the Humber Energy Board, and if he does not will he join me in doing so?
Adrian Ramsay (Waveney Valley) (Green)
Requiring developers to include solar panels in all new homes and buildings would be extremely popular with the public and help deliver net zero targets. Can the Secretary of State give an update on his discussions with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, including those on mandatory solar as part of the future homes and buildings standard?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. We are actively working on that in government. Whatever one’s view on ground-mounted solar—we in the Labour party think that it has a role—we do need solar panels on rooftops. It is an important opportunity. While we are about it, perhaps the hon. Gentleman can start supporting our plans on planning and infrastructure so that we can build the clean energy infrastructure that we need.
Mr Jonathan Brash (Hartlepool) (Lab)
The Secretary of State will be aware of the ongoing work to deliver new nuclear investment in Hartlepool. Billions of pounds are on the table, which will mean jobs and skills for generations to come. Will he meet me to discuss how we can get this deal over the line?
Ed Miliband
New nuclear is an essential part of our future energy plans. My Ministers and I would be absolutely delighted to meet my hon. Friend to discuss those plans.
Stephen Flynn (Aberdeen South) (SNP)
I welcome the warm words from the Secretary of State earlier about the Acorn project. How confident is he that the Chancellor is listening?
Ed Miliband
I speak as an old lag in these things: we have never had a Prime Minister and a Chancellor so enthusiastic and committed to the net zero agenda and what it can do economically for our country. The right hon. Gentleman should take heart from that.
Luke Myer (Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland) (Lab)
Teesside is seeing thousands of jobs coming on stream in carbon capture and storage, but the Conservatives’ new energy policy would put those jobs at risk. Will the Secretary of State restate his commitment to this industry, and will he work to establish a Europe-wide CO2 market to bring investment and jobs to our region?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend puts it so well. This is the economic opportunity of our time. Our investment in carbon capture and storage shows what is possible. Today’s desperate request for attention from the Opposition is anti-business, anti-jobs, anti-growth, anti-investment and the wrong choice for Britain.
Clean Energy: North Sea
Ed Miliband Excerpts(2 months, 2 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Today my Department is launching a consultation on our plan for the future of energy in the North sea.
For decades, the North sea’s workers, businesses and communities have helped power our country and our world. This consultation sets out how we will ensure they power our energy future—continuing oil and gas production for decades to come, while seizing the opportunities of the clean energy revolution.
We know that the North sea is a maturing basin and, as a result, jobs in the oil and gas industry have declined over recent years. For this transition to work, we have to manage our oil and gas assets sensibly while developing a plan for the future.
That is why we are consulting on how Government will work with the sector to manage existing fields for the entirety of their lifespan, as well as how to enact the Government’s commitment not to issue new licences to explore new fields.
This consultation is about a dialogue with industry, workers and communities on building the North sea’s future. The geography and geology of the UK continental shelf (UKCS) are a huge asset in technologies like carbon capture, hydrogen and offshore wind. Britain is well placed to mobilise this natural advantage, but to do so we must put in place policies that will allow us to seize the huge opportunities clean energy presents.
That means harnessing the North sea’s combination of offshore infrastructure, highly-skilled workforce, supply chains and vast natural assets, while ensuring workers have the tools they need to take up new opportunities.
That is what the Government’s mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower is all about. It is the only way to deliver energy security, good, long-term jobs, and a managed, orderly and prosperous transition for the current workforce and communities. At the same time, a science-aligned approach to future oil and gas production is the only way to deliver climate security for future generations.
The Government are determined to co-ordinate the scale-up of the industries which will shape the future of the North sea—including offshore wind, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, and decommissioning—as the basin matures. This is vital for delivering the best outcomes for workers and communities, energy security, and sustainable economic growth.
That is why we have been moving at pace over the last eight months to put in place the foundations of the future. We have already announced that Great British Energy will be headquartered in Aberdeen, reflecting our commitment that the communities that powered our country’s energy past will continue to power its clean energy future.
In addition, we have overseen a record-breaking renewables auction; kickstarted Britain’s carbon capture and hydrogen industries; worked with industry and unions to move forward on a “skills passport” for offshore workers; and put clean energy at the heart of our modern industrial strategy. This consultation takes the next step.
As part of our commitment to provide certainty to industry, it is being published alongside HM Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs’ oil and gas price mechanism consultation, which sets out how the fiscal regime will respond to any future spikes in oil and gas prices once the energy profits levy (EPL) ends.
We will continue to work in partnership with all those involved in building the North sea’s future—businesses, trade unions, workers, environmental groups and communities—as we develop a plan to seize the opportunities of the years ahead.
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Energy Performance of Privately Rented Homes: England and Wales
Ed Miliband Excerpts(3 months, 1 week ago)
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The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero is today publishing a consultation on reforms to the minimum energy efficiency standards that are applied to private rented sector homes under the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015. Improving the energy efficiency of private rented homes is essential to cutting bills, tackling fuel poverty, reducing carbon emissions and increasing our energy independence.
Everyone deserves the security and comfort of a warm home. Our aim is to raise as many households in the private rented sector out of fuel poverty as possible. This consultation is a key step towards meeting our fuel poverty target and ensuring tenants have the warmer homes that they deserve. We are seeking views on a range of proposals to address poorly insulated homes, to help improve living standards and the enforcement of regulations, so that we ensure that tenants are better protected.
The Government are also seeking views on how best to support landlords in delivering effective and high-quality changes, such as changes relating to the energy performance certificate metrics that the new standard should be set against, the implementation timeline, and the maximum required investment, including whether the maximum required investment should be the same for all properties, or whether it should be varied, and under what circumstances a reduced investment might be allowed. Government also seek views on whether short-term let properties should be regulated under these standards, as well as on what role smart meter installation and letting agents should play.
Once we have considered the responses to the consultation, we intend, subject to availability of parliamentary time and approvals, to bring forward changes to both primary and secondary legislation so that we can implement improvements to the Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015.
Government welcome responses to the consultation from all stakeholders, tenants, landlords, letting agencies and local authorities. We look forward to receiving feedback through the consultation and working with all those with an interest in improving the domestic private rented sector and tackling fuel poverty.
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Nuclear Energy: Consenting and Regulation
Ed Miliband Excerpts(3 months, 2 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
The UK’s nuclear sector is at the beginning of a significant expansion in both civil and defence nuclear programmes and will play a key role in delivering the Government’s clean energy superpower mission. Given the sector’s contribution to economic growth, this Government will ensure the right enablers are in place, including effective and proportionate regulation and a suitably flexible planning framework.
The Prime Minister is commissioning an independent taskforce to look at the regulatory framework and regulations affecting nuclear across both civil and defence sectors. The task force will examine how to deliver nuclear faster and cost-effectively in support of growth and innovation, while maintaining the UK’s high standards of nuclear safety, security and non-proliferation. It will be led by an independent expert and will report to the Prime Minister and present options to me, the Defence Secretary, and Chief Secretary to the Treasury to consider in summer 2025.
To improve the planning framework for nuclear infra-structure, today I laid a draft national policy statement (NPS) on nuclear energy infrastructure, called EN-7, before Parliament.
The energy NPSs set out national energy planning policy and form the framework for my decision-making on applications for development consent for nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIP) concerning energy under the Planning Act 2008. EN-7 sets out the policy for considering development consent applications for new nuclear fission infrastructure. It introduces a criteria-based approach, removes the deployment deadline for new projects, and expands the range of technologies covered to include small modular reactors and advanced modular reactors in addition to the existing gigawatt-scale reactors. The new planning framework is robust, transparent and agile and will empower developers to identify potentially suitable sites against a robust set of criteria ensuring safety, sustainability and the mitigation of impacts on the host community.
This is the beginning of the formal parliamentary procedure to designate it and bring it into force as provided for in the Planning Act 2008. From the day on which the draft EN-7 is laid, Parliament will have a “relevant period” according to the Planning Act 2008 to review the draft EN-7, raise questions and make recommendations. The relevant period for EN-7 will start on 6 February 2025 and elapse no sooner than 23 June 2025, provided I have discharged my duty to lay a statement before Parliament addressing any resolutions passed by either House or recommendations made by parliamentary Committees regarding the draft EN-7. A public consultation on EN-7 will run alongside this stage of the parliamentary procedure. Officials will summarise responses to this consultation for interested parliamentary Committees once they have all been received.
After the relevant period has elapsed, the NPS will be laid in Parliament in its final form for approval by resolution by the House of Commons, or by deemed consent by the House of Commons following a 21-sitting-day “consideration period”.
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Oral Answers to Questions
Ed Miliband Excerpts(3 months, 2 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
The national wealth fund is an essential part of our clean energy and growth missions. Recent investments include £20 million of investment into XLCC, a subsea cable manufacturer, to develop a new facility in Scotland, creating 900 jobs; £28 million of investment into Cornish Metals to finance lithium production, supporting more than 300 local jobs; and £1 billion, working with Barclays and Lloyds, to upgrade social housing, giving people warmer homes and lower bills.
Patrick Hurley
I thank the Secretary of State for his answer. In the Liverpool bay area, just off the coast of my Southport constituency, we already have a number of wind farms, including the Burbo Bank scheme. Can he outline to the House what more his Department is doing to ensure that, as we put up these wind farms, jobs are created in constituencies like mine?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend asks a really important question, which Members from right across this House will agree with. The situation we have inherited from the last Government is that Germany has almost twice as many renewables jobs per capita as Britain, Sweden almost three times as many, and Denmark almost four times as many. Through a combination of Great British Energy, the national wealth fund and a clean industry bonus, we are making sure that we do not just build offshore wind in this country, but reap the huge industrial opportunity from it.
Harriet Cross (Gordon and Buchan) (Con)
Will the Secretary of State confirm that the Court of Session’s judgment on Rosebank and Jackdaw was to do with their consents, not their licences? When he comes to consider his decisions on those consents, he should do so on the basis that these are existing, not new, licences.
Ed Miliband
That is an individual planning case, so I will be careful about what I say. What I will say to the hon. Lady is that the last Government made an unlawful decision, according to the court. We are going to follow due process.
Louise Haigh (Sheffield Heeley) (Lab)
GB Nuclear is about to make two decisions on small modular reactors, and I know my right hon. Friend will agree that those SMRs and their supply chains should be built here in the UK. Although we have the capability in Sheffield, we do not necessarily have the capacity, so will he work with me, my colleagues and businesses in Sheffield to look at proposals for a nuclear manufacturing centre of excellence?
Ed Miliband
I welcome that question from my right hon. Friend, who is a fantastic champion of these issues. We will look at any proposal in detail, but she makes such an important point, which I would make to all Members of this House. People will have different views on this issue, but clean energy is the economic opportunity of the 21st century—whether it is small modular reactors, offshore wind, hydrogen or carbon capture. In our first six months, this Government have shown what it means to deliver at pace on the investments that this country needs.
Alex Easton (North Down) (Ind)
Has the Secretary of State engaged in any discussions with Northern Ireland industries on the strategic use of the sovereign wealth fund?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Gentleman makes an important point. I discussed this issue in detail in advance of the preparation of the Great British Energy Bill, and it is also relevant to the national wealth fund. We want our institutions to serve all countries in our United Kingdom, and I encourage him and industries in his constituency to make applications to the national wealth fund, which is there to support people and industries across the UK.
Nick Timothy (West Suffolk) (Con)
The Government policy to decarbonise the grid by 2030 rests on the National Energy System Operator’s assumption of a £147 per tonne carbon price, but manufacturers are lining up to tell the Energy Secretary that it would destroy British industry. Will he guarantee today that for the remainder of this Parliament, we will have a lower carbon price than Europe?
Ed Miliband
NESO made that assumption, but it does not reflect our assumption that the carbon price will be significantly lower. I will not start predicting market prices. What I will say to the hon. Gentleman is that the difference between him and us is that he believes that we should double down on fossil fuels as the answer to the problems facing the country, whereas we know that clean energy is the way forward.
Peter Prinsley (Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Since this Government came into office, we have taken a series of steps to deliver clean, home-grown power for Britain, including lifting the onshore wind ban, consenting to nearly 3 GW of solar and overseeing the most successful renewables auction in history. In December, we published our clean power action plan, which has been widely welcomed by business as providing the route map that simply did not exist under the previous Government.
Peter Prinsley
Energy projects in East Anglia will be crucial for generating the clean, cheap power that this country needs to grow, from wind and solar farms to nuclear power stations, including the much-needed Sizewell C. These projects will bring high-skilled jobs to East Anglia, including in my constituency of Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket. What action are the Government taking to ensure that the infrastructure improvements to connect these projects to the grid will not be hamstrung by the planning process?
Ed Miliband
I thank my hon. Friend for his question and congratulate him on his advocacy. Members across the House have a decision to make here. As the Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, my hon. Friend the Member for Peckham (Miatta Fahnbulleh), said earlier, we are exposed to fossil fuels and we see what is happening in global markets with prices going up. If we want to change that and have clean home-grown power that we can control, we have to build the infrastructure we need. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket (Peter Prinsley) on supporting it and on supporting our planning reforms, and I urge Members across this House to do the same.
Sir Roger Gale (Herne Bay and Sandwich) (Con)
Given that the British taxpayer is paying billions of pounds in subsidies to fell trees in Canada and ship the wood across the Atlantic to burn in the Drax power station, can the Secretary of State tell the House where the clean energy lies within that? Has he read the KPMG report? If he has, will he come to the House and make a statement on his assessment of it?
Ed Miliband
The last Government consulted on what, if any, future support there should be for biomass power stations. We are studying that consultation and we will make a statement in due course.
Catherine Atkinson (Derby North) (Lab)
Community energy projects can help us achieve clean energy by 2030. Darley Abbey Community Energy is surging ahead with plans for 100 kW Archimedes screw on the River Derwent—the same river that powered the world’s first factory 200 years ago. The project could generate enough hydroelectricity to power all the businesses at Darley Abbey Mills, but there are hurdles in place, including planning permission, insurance costs and the need for up-front capital. What can the Government do to support local renewable community projects such as these to succeed?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend makes a fantastically important point, which is that we often think about planning reform as being about the large-scale projects, but it is also about unblocking the smaller-scale projects. Having a national energy policy statement that includes 2030, working with local authorities and making sure there are enough planners to make the decisions—all those things can all make a difference. I congratulate my hon. Friend on her advocacy for this work, and I congratulate the local community on this project.
Carla Denyer (Bristol Central) (Green)
Experts are clear that the savings from the Government’s clean power action plan will be wiped out by 2050 if airport expansion at Heathrow, Gatwick and Luton goes ahead, and that relying on so-called sustainable aviation fuels would use up to half the UK’s agricultural land. Does the Secretary of State agree with the scientists that, while ambitious clean power plans are hugely welcome, if this Government also back airport expansion, they are not going to meet their climate obligations?
Ed Miliband
As the Chancellor said last week, any aviation expansion has to take place within carbon budgets and environmental limits. I would also point out that this Government have achieved more in six months than the last Government did in 14 years. We have lifted the onshore wind ban, consented nearly 3 GW of solar, set up GB Energy and the national wealth fund and held the most successful renewables auction in history. This Government are delivering on clean power.
Joy Morrissey (Beaconsfield) (Con)
To achieve his clean power plan, can the Secretary of State say exactly what local communities need to do to convince him that solar farms on agricultural lands are not appropriate in their area?
Ed Miliband
It is quite extraordinary. We are absolutely exposed as a country, yet the Conservatives oppose clean power. They have a blanket opposition to clean power, so let every person in the country know that when energy bills remain high, they are opposing the things that will bring them down. It is quite extraordinary. This is the Conservative party that lost the last general election—its worst defeat in 200 years—yet if anything, since the election, Conservative Members have got worse and learned nothing.
Joy Morrissey
The Secretary of State recently approved a 524-hectare solar farm in Lincolnshire—a farm linked to Dale Vince, a £5.4 million donor to the Labour party. The public have a right to be certain that this decision was carried out properly, so will the Secretary of State refer his conduct of this application to the independent adviser on ministerial standards? Yes or no?
Ed Miliband
I am glad the hon. Lady asks, because I took no part in this decision—I recused myself. [Interruption.] Here we go. They have nothing to say about the country, just desperate scraping of the barrel. Let the whole House hear that they oppose a solar plan that will put up solar panels throughout the country and give clean power to the British people. The state of the Conservative party is something to behold.
Charlotte Cane (Ely and East Cambridgeshire) (LD)
John Lamont (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) (Con)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
In recent weeks, we have seen continuing rises in prices in global fossil fuel markets, with wholesale gas prices last month 60% higher than a year ago, which is caused by a number of factors. I want to be clear with the House: as long as Britain remains so dependent on fossil fuels, we will be in the grip of these global markets controlled by petrostates and dictators, with direct impacts here at home. The only way to get off this rollercoaster is with clean, home-grown power that we control, and that is what the Government’s clean energy mission is all about.
John Lamont
The Scottish Borders has some of the most beautiful countryside in the whole of the United Kingdom, but it is going to be destroyed by the massive pylons being built by ScottishPower Energy Networks in pursuit of Scottish Government and UK Government policy. Does the Secretary of State think it is right to charge ahead with these plans, which are firmly opposed by local communities?
Ed Miliband
I say to the hon. Gentleman, and I have said it throughout this Question Time, that local communities should have a say, but we have a decision to make as a country. Do we build the clean energy infrastructure to protect us from volatile fossil fuel markets, or do businesses, families and the public finances—£94 billion was spent during the energy bills crisis—remain exposed? I know what I would choose: we protect ourselves.
Oliver Ryan (Burnley) (Lab/Co-op)
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend asks a really important question. The whole point of our clean industry bonus is to incentivise British manufacturing. That is so important for the country, and it was not done by the last Government. We are determined that his constituents and constituents across the country will benefit.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
Andrew Bowie (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (Con)
This Government’s ideological obsession with intermittent renewables at the expense of stable, clean, baseload nuclear power will, we think, be their greatest mistake. They have delayed the small modular reactor down-selection competition, and we have not heard a peep about the final investment decision on Sizewell C. However, none of that comes close to the monumental act of self-harm of deciding to throw away and bury—out of reach, underground—20 years of nuclear-grade plutonium, which could be used to drive forward a nuclear revolution in this country. How does the Secretary of State think this will play with the pro-growth, pro-nuclear MPs in his own party who are already worried about him being a drag on growth?
Ed Miliband
First, may I take this opportunity—I know we are short of time, Madam Deputy Speaker—to congratulate the permanent shadow Energy Secretary, the right hon. Member for East Surrey (Claire Coutinho), on the birth of her baby boy? I am sure the whole House will want to join me in congratulating her. I also congratulate the hon. Gentleman on his temporary elevation.
On the issue of plutonium disposition and the decisions I and my hon. Friends have made, we are acting on the best advice we have inside Government. It has the potential to create thousands of jobs—thousands of long-term jobs—and it is the right thing to do not just for jobs, but for nuclear safety.
Dr Marie Tidball (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (Lab)
Pippa Heylings (South Cambridgeshire) (LD)
While we eagerly await progress on bringing community energy into the Great British Energy Bill when it comes back to this House, will Ministers reassure community groups around the country that they will enlarge and expand the community energy fund of £10 million, which is so successful that it is currently oversubscribed?
Ed Miliband
I know that the hon. Lady has had long discussions with the Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, my hon. Friend the Member for Rutherglen (Michael Shanks), on these issues. We are absolutely determined that, as part of Great British Energy, community energy will be massively expanded. That was our manifesto commitment, and that is what we will deliver. Hon. Members around the Chamber have asked how their community can benefit, and community energy will be an essential part.
Bradley Thomas (Bromsgrove) (Con)
Ed Miliband
We are absolutely determined to build the manufacturing base in this country. I mentioned the investment in XLCC. That is a crucial part of building the supply chains. The supply chains have been eroded over a decade or two; we are determined to build them up.
Peter Prinsley (Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket) (Lab)
Ed Miliband
I have huge respect for the right hon. Gentleman and completely concur with him on this issue. Nuclear is an essential part of our clean energy future. The demand for electricity in the years ahead—there will be a 50% increase by 2035, and demand will probably be double, if not more, by 2050—means that we need all the technologies at our disposal: renewables, nuclear and others. The SNP is 100% in the wrong place on this, but I am glad to say that Scottish Labour is in the right place.
Harpreet Uppal (Huddersfield) (Lab)
When I visited Birkby junior school, I saw that tackling climate change and pollution is one of its key priorities. Does the Minister agree that setting a strong nationally determined contribution at COP29 and committing to an ambitious clean power target is important in demonstrating that the Government are intent on tackling climate change, especially at a time when other global leaders are not?
Alistair Strathern (Hitchin) (Lab)
The UK has a fantastic £26 billion clean tech sector, leading the way in innovation and carbon reduction for everything from clean power to sustainable agriculture. However, all too often, red tape and bureaucracy are locking in dependency on fossil fuels and foreign oil and gas. How can we work across Government to cut back on this unnecessary red tape, and ensure that our schemes support the leading tech and innovation that our best-of-British producers are bringing forward?
Ed Miliband
There is huge potential, and with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, I will chair an artificial intelligence energy council, looking at not only how we can meet the future demands of AI, but how AI and technology can help us deliver the infrastructure and energy system of the future. My hon. Friend the Member for Hitchin (Alistair Strathern) makes an important point, which we will take away.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
Ed Miliband
Let us be frank: the big prize that has eluded past Governments for a long time is a proper plan to upgrade all types of buildings, not just residential properties. The Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, my hon. Friend the hon. Member for Peckham (Miatta Fahnbulleh), and I are working on that closely with colleagues from across Government. It is part of a bigger version of the warm homes plan, which is also about buildings. We will definitely take away the experience that the hon. Lady raises.
Kirsteen Sullivan (Bathgate and Linlithgow) (Lab/Co-op)
What engagement has the Minister had with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities council leaders on local power plans? Does he agree that a partnership approach by Government, councils and community organisations, such as the West Lothian Climate Action Network, is key to the success of local power plans?
Sarah Champion (Rotherham) (Lab)
The Government procurement budget is around £300 billion. Can the Minister please tell us what percentage of his allocation will go to British businesses? Will he confirm that where we have to import, no modern slavery will be imported into this country?
Ed Miliband
On the second question, I completely agree with my hon. Friend, who is an eloquent champion for tackling modern slavery. I know Members from all parts of the House share her view. We need to do better as a Government, in terms of the guidelines inherited from the last Government, and the solar taskforce is looking at those issues. Her first question relates to something that we are discussing with our colleagues in government. The economic and social value we can get as a country from the procurement budget is huge and untapped, and we need to do something about it.
Josh Babarinde (Eastbourne) (LD)
The £80 million swimming pool support fund to help make pools more energy-efficient is facing a significant underspend before it expires in a few months’ time. Will the Minister urgently meet Eastbourne borough council, Better, and me to discuss unlocking this national underspend to help fund solar panels and pool covers at Eastbourne Sovereign centre, where I learned to swim?
Ed Miliband
I am massively in favour of solar panels on swimming pools and lidos—I am an occasional lido user myself—so I am fully on board with the hon. Gentleman’s point. I will pass it on to colleagues in government.
Darren Paffey (Southampton Itchen) (Lab)
Southampton Itchen has many Victorian and inter-war homes that are poorly insulated and therefore expensiveto heat, especially as the Conservative party dragged its feet and did not invest in clean or affordable energy. What steps is the Minister taking to improve the insulation and energy efficiency of my constituents’ homes?
Ed Miliband
This is hard, partly because of the fiscal backdrop, but we are working on a comprehensive plan so that we can help not just the poorest—we want to help those in fuel poverty—but people across the income spectrum through a more universal offer. If we can get funding for up-front investments, there will be massive paybacks; that is the chance. We all know that. It is a hard nut to crack, but we are doing our best to do so.
Richard Tice (Boston and Skegness) (Reform)
Energy suppliers are now forecasting that the energy price cap will go up in April by another 5%, making for some 16% since last summer. Will the Secretary of State tell the House when bills will come down—or will net stupid zero mean that they will only ever go up?
Ed Miliband
It is a particular pleasure to end with the hon. Gentleman. Here it is: a decision for all Members of the House to make. We are on the rollercoaster of the fossil fuel markets; we have no control over them. The mission of this Government is to take back control with clean, home-grown power. I urge him and Members across the House to support taking back control.
UNFCCC: UK's 2035 Nationally Determined Contribution Target
Ed Miliband Excerpts(3 months, 3 weeks ago)
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The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Under the Paris agreement, all parties are required to communicate their nationally determined contributions to the United Nations framework convention on climate change every 5 years, nine to 12 months prior to the relevant COP. NDCs covering the period 2031 to 2035 are due by 10 February 2025, ahead of COP30 in Brazil.
The Prime Minister announced on 12 November 2024 at COP29, three months ahead of the deadline, the UK’s 2035 NDC target to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions by at least 81% by 2035, compared with 1990 levels, excluding emissions from international aviation and shipping. The 2035 NDC is based on advice from the independent Climate Change Committee. It is a clear progression on the UK’s previous NDC pledging to reduce emissions by at least 68% by 2030, which remains in place. It is informed by the outcomes of the global stocktake from COP28 and is aligned with limiting global warming to 1.5°C. It is also aligned with the level of ambition in carbon budget 6 (2033 to 2037) on the pathway to net zero by 2050.
Today, the UK has submitted to the UNFCCC the information to facilitate clarity, transparency and understanding of the 2035 NDC, to aid interpretation of the headline emissions reduction target. The ICTU contains information about the scope, timing, sectors and greenhouse gases covered by the target, as well as some high-level information on policies and measures involved in delivering the NDC. It also includes information on how the NDC was created, how the NDC is considered fair and ambitious and informed by the aims of the Paris agreement, the convention, and the outcomes of the global stocktake.
Making Britain a clean-energy superpower is one of the five national missions of this Government. We will deliver an updated cross-economy plan to meet our climate targets in due course, with full detail of policy packages for all sectors. This will outline the policies and proposals needed to deliver carbon budgets 4 to 6 and the 2030 and 2035 NDCs on the pathway to net zero by 2050.
The UK’s early and ambitious NDC will help restore our global climate leadership and encourage greater ambition from other countries. It is one important part of the UK’s overall contribution to global emissions reductions, alongside our international climate finance and other support.
[HCWS404]
Oral Answers to Questions
Ed Miliband Excerpts(5 months ago)
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Josh Simons (Makerfield) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
In the Budget, the Government decided to transfer the mineworkers’ pension scheme investment reserve to members of the scheme. At the end of last month, the first increase in payments was made to over 100,000 ex-miners and their families. That has meant an extra 32% rise in people’s pensions each month—an average of £29 per week. The overturning of that historic injustice demonstrates the difference made by a Labour Government.
Lillian Jones
I thank the Secretary of State for that reply and for his attentive engagement on the issue. I understand that British coal staff superannuation scheme trustees wrote to the Department last month with reform proposals. I urge the Secretary of State to meet them as soon as possible to rectify the long-standing injustice, especially given the increasing age and declining health of the beneficiaries.
Ed Miliband
I should say that the praise all goes to the Minister for Industry, my hon. Friend the Member for Croydon West (Sarah Jones), for the progress that has been made. She is in sole charge of the issue. I know that she has been engaging with the trustees of the BCSSS; indeed, I believe she met them yesterday. She knows the point my hon. Friend the Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun (Lillian Jones) is making about that scheme.
Nick Smith
In Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney, 1,600 miners received the biggest number of increased payments from the mineworkers’ pension scheme in Wales. All of my uncles on my mum’s side were miners. Dessie Winter, who is alive and well, will benefit from the MPS changes, but my uncles Georgie and Jackie were pit supervisors who paid into the separate National Coal Board staff pension scheme. They have sadly passed, but their colleagues deserve fairness. Since 1994, the Government have received £3.1 billion from the BCSSS. Will the Secretary of State say if he will look again at the staff side’s surplus payments to benefit our pensioners?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend makes his point with customary eloquence. I know from personal experience that there were people who were waiting for the injustice to be remedied but unfortunately died before that happened. He refers to part of the issue raised by the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee, as it then was, about 50:50 surplus sharing. I know my hon. Friend the Minister for Industry is looking at that.
Graeme Downie
Correcting the injustice in the mineworkers’ pension scheme has made an incredible difference to the former miners in my constituency of Dunfermline and Dollar after so many years. At the weekend, I met representatives from the BCSSS in Fife, including the men and women who are particularly affected by that scheme and the women who worked in the canteens and other areas, who feel that they have been left behind by the changes to the MPS. Will the Secretary of State meet campaigners in Fife and across Scotland regarding this issue, and will he ensure that he makes progress as quickly as possible to correct the injustice that those people have suffered as well?
Ed Miliband
I know from my constituency that there is a strong feeling about the BCSSS. That is why my hon. Friend the Minister for Industry has moved at speed to meet the trustees. The schemes are not exactly the same in some of their arrangements, but my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and (Graeme Downie) is right to say that there is certainly a read-across from some of the injustices in the MPS, and I know that the Minister for Industry is looking at that.
Jacob Collier
As a Collier, I welcome the Government’s announcement on the mineworkers’ pension scheme. However, as the Secretary of State has heard, the BCSSS members, including my constituent Mitch Wainwright, have raised concerns about unequal treatment, given the similarities between the schemes. What steps are the Secretary of State and the Minister taking to ensure that those former British Coal employees are treated as equitably as those in the MPS?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is right about the read-across and the sense that the injustice that has been remedied in the MPS needs to be remedied in the BCSSS. There is also a real need for speed. That is why my hon. Friend the Minister for Industry is on the case, as she was so brilliantly on the MPS, delivering in less than five months the justice that the Conservative Government never delivered in 14 years.
Josh Simons
In my constituency of Makerfield, more than 500 people stand to benefit from changes introduced by this Government to the mineworkers’ pension scheme. For years, those people and their families stood by and watched as the Conservative Government stole their pensions and disrespected their work. I want us to celebrate our industrial past and those who made this nation wealthy and powered our industrial revolution. Does the Secretary of State agree that we need to do more to remember the legacy of mining as well as to drive up the living standards of those on the mineworkers’ pension scheme?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is right. I think I am right in saying—my hon Friend the Minister for Industry and I have had a discussion about this—that almost every constituency—
Ed Miliband
Every constituency has members of the MPS who are benefiting from this. I hope the Conservative party welcomes a Labour Government acting on this injustice—there is not much sign of that, though. My hon. Friend the Member for Makerfield (Josh Simons) makes the point about commemorating the work of miners, which is something that I feel strongly about and that we will pursue.
James Wild (North West Norfolk) (Con)
I am sure that any of my constituents who stand to benefit from this increase will welcome it, but how many members of the mineworkers’ pension scheme will be losing out on winter fuel payments worth up to £300 due to the decisions that this Government have taken?
Ed Miliband
This is actually to do with the disastrous economic legacy that was left by the Conservative party. The truth is that, even in tough times, the Labour Government are showing with their decisions on the MPS how we can make our society more just.
Lisa Smart (Hazel Grove) (LD)
One of the questions I was most frequently asked when I was the trustee of one of the larger local authority pension schemes was what more the fund could do to tackle climate change, particularly in relation to investing in fossil fuel companies. Will the Secretary of State update the House on the conversations that he has been having with the Pensions Minister to ensure that pension funds do their bit to help get us to net zero?
Ed Miliband
That is an excellent question, Mr Speaker. I will write to the hon. Lady with a good answer.
Calum Miller (Bicester and Woodstock) (LD)
I was pleased to see the Secretary of State saying last week that those who host clean energy infrastructure should benefit from it. When landowners and developers in my constituency are cashing in on building new solar, my constituents in Bicester and Woodstock think that it is only fair that benefits are shared. Will the Secretary of State tell me whether he will follow the model of other Governments in setting a mandatory—
David Chadwick (Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe) (LD)
I should declare an interest in that many of my relatives across south Wales are former miners. In the autumn Budget, the Government quite rightly made the decision to end the pension injustice for miners who were part of the mineworkers’ pension scheme, but they did not do the same for the 40,000 miners who were part of the British coal staff superannuation scheme, including 151 former miners in my own constituency. Will the Government guarantee that these men and women get the pension they deserve and explain why they will have to wait longer for justice than many of their former colleagues?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Member and I both have constituency interests in this matter, and he is right to say that. None the less, I say gently to him that no action was taken on this for a very, very long time—indeed, since privatisation. This Government took action in the Budget in less than five months. That is the difference. I have made it absolutely clear that my hon. Friend the Minister for Industry is now turning her excellent attention to the BCSSS.
Jim Shannon
May I welcome what the Government and the Minister are doing on this matter? This good scheme takes care of an injustice from some 30 years ago. There are those in Northern Ireland who worked in the mines, and their families are still concerned about this issue. Can we have a timescale for the completion of the work on the British coal staff superannuation scheme, which some of them would have qualified for?
Ed Miliband
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. I am glad that he, too—like everyone else in this House, according to my hon. Friend the Minister for Industry—has constituents who will be benefiting from this work. The best I can say to him on this issue, which has now been rightly raised a number of times, is that the Minister for Industry will have heard the calls made with real urgency, which I think we all recognise, and will act accordingly.
Olly Glover (Didcot and Wantage) (LD)
Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Last Friday, we published our landmark clean power action plan, which sets out the route towards our world-leading 2030 clean power mission, including wholesale reform of the grid and planning to make it happen. This is the route to getting off the rollercoaster of fossil fuel markets and delivering energy security, lower bills and good jobs for the British people, as well as tackling the climate crisis.
Mr Barros-Curtis
I thank the Secretary of State for that answer. Given Wales’s tradition and history of fuelling the UK’s energy needs, can the Secretary of State tell us what his plans are to put Wales at the heart of our energy security and net zero agenda?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend asks a really important question. The whole clean power plan is about benefiting all four nations of the United Kingdom, including Wales, and we work closely with the Welsh Government on these issues. Before this Labour Government came to office, they were actually trailblazers on how we could have publicly owned generation, and that is one of the things that we and GB Energy are working with them on.
Perran Moon
Meur ras, ha myttin da, Mr Speaker. We have seen the terrible consequences for households of fossil fuel energy insecurity, and we cannot allow this to happen with the transition to renewables. However, to achieve our net zero goals, we will have to see a massive increase in demand for critical minerals such as tin and lithium, much of the supply and processing of which will be dominated by economically bad actors. Will the Minister meet me to discuss how the Government will be mitigating this clear and present danger?
Ed Miliband
I very much enjoyed my trip to my hon. Friend’s constituency before the general election. He is an incredibly powerful advocate for the way his area can source some of the critical minerals we need, including lithium, and he is right about this. The concentration of supply chains, including critical minerals, has taken a generation to arrive, but we must unwind it, and it is one of the many things we are working on as a Government.
Greg Smith (Mid Buckinghamshire) (Con)
Small modular reactors are less land intensive, are very efficient and would get us to clean energy very quickly if the Government were to get on and actually support some orders. As land is in scarce supply, when will the Government get on board with nuclear, instead of shackling themselves to the inefficient, land-destroying, countryside beauty-destroying and inefficient solar.
Ed Miliband
I can tell the hon. Gentleman that we support the SMR programme, and we are driving it forward through Great British Nuclear. I am afraid he is making a terrible mistake, which is that we need all of these clean technologies at our disposal—we need nuclear, we need renewables, we need carbon capture and storage—and the difference is that this Government are getting on with it. We have delivered more in five months than the last Government did in 14 years.
Llinos Medi (Ynys Môn) (PC)
Despite lifting the onshore wind ban in England, the clean power action plan shows that, by 2030, 8,600 MW of onshore wind will be needed in England and Wales, 5,000 MW of which will be mainly in Wales, with bits in England. Can the Secretary of State outline exactly how Wales will be benefiting from this huge ramp up in onshore wind, rather than the benefits being extracted out of Wales?
Ed Miliband
I have to say to the hon. Lady that I do not see it that way. The reality is that the country is totally vulnerable to the rollercoaster of the fossil fuel markets. We do not need to look into a crystal ball; we just need to look at the record: we saw the worst cost of living crisis in generations. So long as we are exposed in this way, people in Wales and across the country are vulnerable. That is why clean power is so important, and the Opposition should get on and support it.
Andrew Bowie (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (Con)
In the clean power 2030 document published last week, the Government state that they are
“progressing the post-2030 generation interventions, with final decisions on Sizewell C and the Great British Nuclear-led Small Modular Reactor programme”,
but no date is specified for the final investment decision on Sizewell, no date is specified for completion of the down-selection SMR process, there is no indication of a route to market for advanced modular or other technologies, and there is no mention of Wylfa at all. So is it any wonder that the nuclear industry holds a suspicion that this Government are not serious about nuclear, that the damascene conversion to nuclear power professed by the Secretary of State is a false one and that, for the Government, it is renewables at any cost and the exclusion of everything else?
Ed Miliband
I find the hon. Gentleman quite extraordinary, and not in a good way. The last Government left not only a generalised absolute mess in the public finances, but lots of the programmes that he is talking about were not even funded. The difference with this Government and my right hon. Friend the Chancellor is that she put the money for Sizewell in the Budget. That is something the Conservatives simply do not understand. [Interruption.] You get the point.
Andrew Bowie
It was us in government who bought the Wylfa and Oldbury sites from Hitachi last year, giving much-needed certainty to the workforce and local communities on both sites. It was on 22 May that we announced that Wylfa was our preferred location for a third gigawatt-scale reactor, again giving a boost to that community and the wider industry. I have three questions. Is it still the Government’s intention to reach 24 GW of nuclear power by 2050? Does the Secretary of State acknowledge that that is impossible without another gigawatt-scale reactor? If a third gigawatt-scale reaction is planned, will it be built at Wylfa and, if not, what is the future for the Wylfa site?
Ed Miliband
The hon. Gentleman’s story about Wylfa says it all. He says his Government had this great plan for Wylfa, but they had no money behind it.
Ed Miliband
Yes, but the hon. Gentleman does not say how the power station will be funded. The truth is that this is elementary economics. If things are announced, they need to be able to be funded, and the Conservatives need to learn that lesson.
Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)
Charlie Dewhirst (Bridlington and The Wolds) (Con)
The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
We are already seeing the benefits of our energy superpower mission and investment in jobs. Since the start of November, we have seen a £1 billion investment in Hull by Siemens Gamesa, supporting 1,300 jobs in blade manufacturing. Ørsted has announced £100 million of orders for UK firms, and we have reached financial close on the UK’s first carbon capture in Teesside. That is what it means to have a Government delivering jobs and investment for the British people.
Charlie Dewhirst
There appears to be inconsistency between what Ministers are saying about the report by the National Energy System Operator and what the CEO of NESO told the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee last week. Can the Secretary of State answer this clearly: does the NESO report forecast higher or lower energy bills under his policy?
Ed Miliband
I am very glad that the hon. Gentleman has asked that question, as the shadow Secretary of State has asked me about that. [Interruption.] I will answer the question. Page 77 of the NESO report says very clearly what happens to overall costs in the system: electricity costs are reduced by £10 per MWh. As NESO says, it is for Government to make policy choices that determine the precise impact on bills, but the report is clear that the system will be cheaper. It is completely logical to say that that will lead to a reduction in bills.
Michelle Welsh (Sherwood Forest) (Lab)
Claire Coutinho (East Surrey) (Con)
Labour’s policy on the North sea will cost the country £12 billion in tax receipts, which would be enough to cover the winter fuel payment for many, many years. Pensioners will be in the cold this winter, and this is a policy that no other major economy is pursuing. How can the Government possibly justify it?
Ed Miliband
These are more fantasy numbers from the right hon. Lady. The truth is that the North sea has lost a third of its employment in the past decade. The only future for the North sea is in what this Government are doing: investing in carbon capture and storage, in offshore wind and in hydrogen. That is the future.
Claire Coutinho
That is not my figure; it is a figure from industry—£12 billion in lost North sea tax receipts, in addition to £8 billion for an energy company that will not generate energy, and at least £200 billion for a 2030 target that we now know will not cut bills. Is it not true that pensioners will be sitting in the cold this winter to pick up the bill for this Secretary of State?
Ed Miliband
No. The case is that the Conservatives left us dependent on fossil fuels, which led to the worst cost of living crisis in living memory. The tragedy is that they are doubling down on their failed policy. The only answer for lower bills is clean, home-grown energy that we control.
Kevin Bonavia (Stevenage) (Lab)
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Great British Energy—headquartered in Aberdeen—is already up and running. Our plans for Great British Energy will be rolled out in the new year. Those plans include working with local communities for solar on schools and hospitals, so that we can start cutting bills for public services and local communities.
Mr Gagan Mohindra (South West Hertfordshire) (Con)
Ed Miliband
The truth is that there is only one way to get bills down sustainably in this country, which is to drive towards clean energy. The Conservatives used to believe that, too; then, in September 2023, the former Prime Minister took them on an anti-net zero crusade, and it is only getting worse.
Sam Rushworth (Bishop Auckland) (Lab)
Dr Ben Spencer (Runnymede and Weybridge) (Con)
Ed Miliband
I will not answer the hon. Gentleman directly, but I will say that I am working with my colleagues across Government on this crucial issue. We will do everything we can to drive down Russia’s benefits from its oil and gas industry, because that is a crucial part of the war effort to help Ukraine.
Matt Turmaine (Watford) (Lab)
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is right about this. We must not have short memories here, because the truth is that the cost of living crisis that we saw after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine not only hit families and businesses across Britain, but continues to hit them today. That is why the drive for clean power is so important. Every solar panel we put up, every wind turbine we erect, and every piece of grid we build makes us more secure as a country.
Seamus Logan (Aberdeenshire North and Moray East) (SNP)
Ed Miliband
We will look at the scheme in the spending review. I believe that it is important not just to Scotland but to the whole UK, but I want to level with the hon. Gentleman and, indeed, the House: it requires significant financial resources. We found the resources for track 1 of carbon capture, usage and storage and we want to find the resources for track 2, but that, as I have said, will be part of the spending review.
Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Lab)
Max Wilkinson (Cheltenham) (LD)
Seventy-five per cent of voters think that all new homes should come with solar panels on the roof as standard. Do the Government agree?
Ed Miliband
I am very sympathetic towards this issue, and we are in discussions with our colleagues across Government. Watch this space.
Andrew Cooper (Mid Cheshire) (Lab)
Cheshire is leading the way in CCUS, whether it is in hydrogen production, where it is providing the means of transition as a new industry is established, or in hard-to-abate sectors such as glass or cement production, where CCUS is a vital decarbonisation component. Our strategy is creating jobs, growing our skills base and unlocking a low-carbon future. Does the Minister agree that it will not be possible to get to net zero without CCUS?
Steve Barclay (North East Cambridgeshire) (Con)
The Grimsby to Walpole National Grid scheme will see pylons almost twice the height of the existing ones being placed across the flat landscape of the fens. Why does the Secretary of State think that the cost of chasing his unrealistic 2030 target should be disproportionately borne by rural communities?
Ed Miliband
I have great respect for the right hon. Gentleman. The truth is that we need to build the grid, regardless of whether the target is 2030 or 2035. This Government are being honest and open with people in saying that the grid needs to be built. If we do not build the grid, we will remain massively vulnerable as a country.
Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab)
Last year, the UK imported 43% of our energy. Does the Secretary of State agree that, as well as protecting bill payers from the volatility of international fossil fuel markets and giving us energy independence, we have the potential for economic benefits from exporting electricity and hydrogen through the clean power plan?
Ed Miliband
My hon. Friend is absolutely right about that. It is about energy independence for Britain, and about becoming a clean energy superpower that can export energy and benefit as a country. The opportunities are huge, which is why we are getting on with it.
Stephen Flynn (Aberdeen South) (SNP)
I think the Secretary of State is now arguing that energy bills will fall by £300 by 2030. A simple question: how much will they rise by before then?
Ed Miliband
I am disappointed in the right hon. Gentleman, but perhaps I should not be surprised. The truth is that there is only one future for Britain that reduces bills for good: a clean power mission. We can carry on being vulnerable, and we can carry on with fossil fuels, but we will be in the grip of petrostates and dictators. This Government are not willing to leave us exposed.
Ian Lavery (Blyth and Ashington) (Lab)
The Lynemouth biomass power station in my constituency has some very ambitious and exciting projects involving carbon capture and storage, but it is waiting for some major decisions by the Department. Will the Minister agree to meet me so that we can tackle these pressing outstanding issues?
Carla Denyer (Bristol Central) (Green)
Thirteen oil and gas fields have been licensed for new drilling of dangerous fossil fuels but are still awaiting final approval. The Government paused those decisions while doing a consultation, but the consultation will not change the science: if we are to meet our climate targets, those fossil fuels must stay in the ground. Will the Secretary of State do the right thing by the poorest in our country, who are always at the sharpest end of climate action, and ensure that those licences will not be granted?
Ed Miliband
This is a Government with a world-leading position when it comes to oil and gas, and we will do the right thing for the environment and climate change and the right thing to ensure that there is a just transition in the North sea.
Grahame Morris (Easington) (Lab)
On behalf of my constituents, I want to thank the Secretary of State, the Minister of State, the Parliamentary Private Secretaries and the whole team for the excellent work that has been carried out to deliver justice on the mineworkers’ pensions. Can I urge them to act with alacrity in relation to the British Coal staff superannuation scheme, and may I invite the Minister to look at some of the energy pilots that are making use of mine water from abandoned mine workings?
Ed Miliband
I pay tribute to my hon. Friend, who has been a brilliant campaigner on this issue for a very long time. My hon. Friend the Minister of State will have heard what he said. This is the difference: this is a Labour Government delivering justice for mineworkers across our country and their families, which is all part of delivering our mission for the country.
Accelerating to Net Zero: CCC Progress Report and Clean Energy Superpower Mission
Ed Miliband Excerpts(5 months ago)
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The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Ed Miliband)
Accelerating to net zero offers huge opportunities for Britain. This transition will be one of the economic opportunities of the century—a chance to create hundreds of thousands of good jobs, to drive investment into all parts of the UK and to protect the UK economy from future price shocks that reliance on fossil fuels creates. Beyond growth and energy security, the transition to a net zero economy can deliver a range of social and health benefits for people right across the UK. As we act on how we heat our homes and buildings, fuel our transport and protect our natural world, we can cut fuel poverty, clean up our air, increase access to nature and improve quality of life.
Looking beyond the UK, we also have an important role to play. For example, the UK was the first country to set legally binding carbon budgets and the first major economy to establish a net zero target in law. Now, more than 90% of the world’s economy is covered by a net zero commitment. The UK showed leadership again at COP29, where we announced that our 2035 nationally determined contribution (NDC) headline target will reduce all greenhouse gas emissions by at least 81% on 1990 levels, excluding international aviation and shipping emissions. This is an ambitious, economy-wide emissions reduction target that aligns with the recommendation of the Climate Change Committee (CCC) and the sixth carbon budget, set by the previous Government.
The CCC’s 2024 progress report to Parliament made clear the committee’s view that the previous Government were off track and urgent action is needed, and we take these findings seriously. That is why we are taking urgent and ambitious action, and why making Britain a clean energy superpower is one of this Government’s five missions.
In response to the CCC’s 2024 progress report, today’s publication highlights the achievements that this Government have overseen already and looks forward to upcoming actions that will be key in reducing our emissions and seizing the economic opportunities of net zero.
For example, in our first few months in office we have: lifted the de facto onshore wind ban; approved solar projects offering power of almost 2GW; launched Great British Energy; announced investments of over £20 billion in carbon capture, usage and storage, which is a new industry for Britain; delivered a record-breaking renewables auction; and set out plans to increase the energy efficiency of rented homes, in order to lift a million households out of fuel poverty.
The action taken so far and our future plans mean that this Government are acting or partially acting on all of the CCC’s 35 recommendations to the UK Government, with progress proactively being made on the CCC’s 35 recommendations for the devolved Governments.
This is just the beginning. Over the coming months we will set out the next steps for our mission, including publishing a Clean Power 2030 action plan, setting out a detailed updated plan to meet our carbon budgets, and setting the pathway to the seventh carbon budget by June 2026. These future moments will be key in delivering our pathway to net zero, bolstering growth and clean jobs, ensuring energy security, and delivering social and health benefits.
Through our mission-driven Government, we will act with much greater urgency and determination than the past. We will continue to work in partnership with businesses, trade unions, civil society and all levels of Government to seize the opportunities of action.
As required by the Climate Change Act 2008, I will place copies of today’s publication “Accelerating to Net Zero: Responding to the CCC Progress Report and delivering the Clean Energy Superpower Mission” in the Libraries of both Houses.
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