Feed-in Tariffs Debate

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Feed-in Tariffs

Jason McCartney Excerpts
Monday 31st October 2011

(13 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lord Barker of Battle Portrait Gregory Barker
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That is why, unlike the previous Government, we are bringing forward transformational proposals as part of our electricity market reform. We have already had one Energy Bill in this Parliament; another will be along shortly.

Jason McCartney Portrait Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
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I fully appreciate that the previous Government intended to reduce feed-in tariffs at some stage. However, what assessment does the Minister make of the effect of this announcement on small and medium-sized enterprises that have flourished in installing solar PV over the past couple of years?

Lord Barker of Battle Portrait Gregory Barker
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They have flourished only really in the last few months. The rate of deployment doubled between September and June. We are seeing an extraordinary bubble that has grown over the past few months. Of course, these enterprises will see their order books reduced relative to the past few months, but we need to put them on a sustainable footing. A lot of people in the industry have raised such concerns privately with me. Anyone who talks to solar producers knows that they realise that there needs to be responsible and sustainable growth, not a quick burst.