Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of its policy on onshore wind energy on domestic energy prices.
Answered by Claire Perry
Our policies for delivering clean growth generated an average net saving on household energy bills of £14 in 2016[1].The Clean Growth Strategy sets out our ambition to secure the lowest electricity costs in Europe, particularly for domestic consumers, and also to deliver the Government’s carbon targets and ensure security of supply.
[1] PG 42 Clean Growth Strategy - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/700496/clean-growth-strategy-correction-april-2018.pdf
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of British farms at risk of bankruptcy in each of the next three years; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
The Department does not hold this information.
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many farms have declared bankruptcy in each of the last five years.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
The Insolvency Service produces quarterly statistics on the number of new insolvencies for companies and individuals in England and Wales, including breakdowns by industry. The most recent statistics, covering the period January to March 2018, which include a comparison with previous periods, were published on Friday 27 April 2018 on gov.uk.
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the cost per MWh of energy generated by (a) onshore wind, (b) offshore wind, (c) solar PV, (d) open cycle gas, (e) combine cycle gas and (f) coal in 2020.
Answered by Claire Perry
BEIS’s most recent published assessment of electricity generation costs can be found in the generation costs report (2016)[1] which covers both renewable and non-renewable technologies. We are currently undertaking a review of our evidence on levelised costs of electricity generation.
The relevant section of the 2016 generation cost report is included below. BEIS no longer produces estimates for the levelised cost of unabated coal.
Levelised Cost Estimates for NOAK Projects Commissioning in 2020, Technology-specific Hurdle Rates, £/MWh (2014 prices)
| CCGT H Class | OCGT 600MW (500hrs) | Offshore Wind Round 3 | Large Scale Solar PV | Onshore Wind >5MW UK |
Pre Development Costs | 0 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 4 |
Construction Costs | 7 | 63 | 73 | 52 | 44 |
Fixed O&M | 2 | 17 | 24 | 9 | 10 |
Variable O&M | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
Fuel Costs | 35 | 52 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Carbon Costs | 19 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 66 | 166 | 106 | 67 | 63 |
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to support local businesses in (a) Coventry and (b) the West Midlands.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
Small and medium-sized businesses across England can access support through GOV.UK and the Business Support Helpline. Over the last three years, Government has also supported and invested in the creation of 38 Growth Hubs (one in each Local Enterprise
Partnership area), providing businesses across England with tailored advice and support. To date, Growth Hubs have engaged and supported over 570,000 businesses, delivered 68,000 diagnostic interventions and helped 11,391 individuals to start a business.
Since launch, the six Growth Hubs in the West Midlands have supported over 37,500 businesses; delivered over 2,200 intensive diagnostics; and helped over 1,850 individuals to start a business. Of these, the Coventry and Warwickshire Growth Hub has supported over 2,530 businesses; delivered 380 intensive diagnostics and helped 415 individuals to start a business.
In addition, the recently launched £250 million Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF), provides finance to help smaller business across the Midlands to start up and grow, helping realise the region’s potential to achieve economic growth through enterprise. As at March 2018, it had made 6 investments into 6 SMEs in the West Midlands with £203k invested.
Aligned to this, the Midlands Engine Strategy sets out our actions to date and the next steps to deliver our vision for the Midlands by tackling local productivity barriers. This includes; £392m for Midland's projects to accelerate local growth, bringing the total Growth Deal Funding for the Midlands to nearly £1.9 billion, a flagship £20 million Midlands Skills Challenge to improve skills across the Midlands, £4 million to support the Midlands Engine Partnership to deepen their excellent work.
Furthermore, programmes operated by the government-backed British Business Bank (BBB) are supporting £4 billion of finance to over 65,000 smaller businesses (as at end Sept 2017). Since the launch of the British Business Bank in November 2014, its programmes have facilitated over £607m to businesses in the West Midlands. Of this figure, over £75m has supported businesses in Coventry*. Additionally, since 2012, the Start-up Loans programme has made over 4,500 loans totalling over £31m in the West Midlands, this includes 244 loans totalling over £1.5m in Coventry**.
Through our Industrial Strategy, we will continue to back small and medium-sized business to grow and create jobs by providing an environment in which they can thrive.
*BBB figures minus SUL are as at end of December 2017
** SUL figures at end of December 2017
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many new start-ups there have been in the media and culture sector in (a) Coventry and (b) the West Midlands in each of the last five years.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
We do not hold data showing the number of business start-ups in the Media and Culture sector.
The Business Demography Publication details how many start-ups there have been in the Creative Industries.
When looking at business start-ups we look at business births. The Office of National Statistics defines business births as new business registrations.
The following table gives the number of business births within Creative Industries in Coventry and West Midlands from 2012 to 2016
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 |
West Midlands | 1,780 | 2,270 | 2,185 | 2,225 | 2,205 |
Coventry | 145 | 185 | 185 | 170 | 180 |
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with OFGEM on Distribution Network Operator margins and profits; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Claire Perry
Energy network price controls are a matter for Ofgem as the independent regulator and, by law, must be set independently of Government. Government welcomes Ofgem’s recent proposals for the next set of price controls (due to start in 2021) which Ofgem estimates will save customers £5 billion over 5 years. Government expects network companies to act in the best interests of consumers and welcomes the voluntary returns that have been made by some network companies in this price control. Ofgem estimates that these will benefit customers by more than £650 million. We expect the remaining companies to follow suit.
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of the use of smart meters on (a) domestic household energy bills and (b) the level of domestic energy switching; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Claire Perry
Smart Meters are forecast to reduce household bills by £300m by 2020. Smart Energy GB have also found that 86% of people with a smart meter have already made energy saving changes to their behaviour, while British Gas have reported that their dual fuel smart meter customers are reducing their energy consumption by almost 4% on average.
Smart meters offer real-time information on energy usage in pounds and pence, enabling consumers to better understand their bills and how they use energy. Ofgem’s Consumer Engagement Survey for 2017 showed that consumers who say they have a smart meter are more likely to have switched supplier in the past 12 months (23% versus 17% who don’t say they have a smart meter). The survey is available here: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/consumer-engagement-survey-2017
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the viability of the future of the Energy Companies Obligation scheme; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Claire Perry
The Department will shortly consult on the Energy Companies Obligation (ECO) scheme that will run until March 2022. We propose focusing the scheme on low income and vulnerable households to reduce fuel poverty and support more innovation and as the Clean Growth Strategy published last October stated we will continue to enact support for home energy efficiency measures to 2028 at least at the current level of ECO funding.
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effect of not bringing forward new funds through the Levy Control Framework before 2025 on future renewable and low-carbon investment in the UK; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Claire Perry
The Government’s sustained support for clean energy has led to dramatic falls in the costs of some renewable electricity generation technologies. For example, Government support has helped halve the Contracts for Difference strike prices needed to bring forward new offshore wind projects.
Nevertheless, the Government is committed to keeping energy costs as low as possible in order to protect consumers. In Autumn Budget 2017 the Government announced the Control for Low Carbon Levies, which sets out that there will be no new low carbon electricity levies until the burden of such costs is falling.
The Control does not rule out future support for any technology. In addition, all existing contracts and contracts and commitments will be respected, including the commitment of up to £557 million (in 2011-12 prices) for further Contracts for Difference confirmed in the recent Clean Growth Strategy. The significant cost reductions that were achieved in the last Contracts for Difference auction indicate that this support could secure far more low carbon electricity than originally anticipated.