John Hayes
Main Page: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)(11 years, 6 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Simon Hughes (Bermondsey and Old Southwark) (LD)
4. What his policy is on subsidising new nuclear power stations; and if he will make a statement.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Mr John Hayes)
What a pleasure it is to answer energy questions for the first time, and to do so with the wind in my sails!
New nuclear power will have a vital role to play in our energy mix, alongside other low-carbon forms of generation. It must be delivered to provide value for money for consumers, and funded through the investment that will spring from our exciting market reforms.
Simon Hughes
May I seek absolute clarity? Given that the Liberal Democrats oppose a new generation of nuclear power stations, and given that the coalition deal was done only on the basis that there would be no public subsidy for any nuclear power, may I have an express assurance that the construction and operation of every nuclear power station in the future will receive no Government subsidy at all? Can that be made absolutely clear, so that Hitachi understands it and everyone else understands it too?
Mr Hayes
Let me be crystal clear, because the right hon. Gentleman is right to inquire about this. There will be no levy, no direct payment and no market support for electricity supplied or capacity provided by a private sector new nuclear operator unless similar support is provided more widely for other types of generation. I could not be clearer than that.
Caroline Lucas (Brighton, Pavilion) (Green)
With respect, the Minister could be a lot clearer than that. A subsidy is still a subsidy even if it is given to other types of generation as well as nuclear.
According to recently published estimates, just the 16 GW of new nuclear capacity to be built by 2025 will require between £5.5 billion and £12.6 billion a year in finance. That is a huge cost to householders and businesses. Does the Minister agree with those figures, and will he admit that given the constraints of the levy cap, he faces a choice between breaching the renewables directive, breaching the Climate Change Act 2008 and abandoning his increasingly implausible plans for new nuclear build?
Mr Hayes
Nuclear power is a low-emission technology, and the hon. Lady should welcome it accordingly. She obviously regarded this week’s good news as bad news, but it is good news in terms of the supply chain—as my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has said—it is good news for the British people, and it is good news for our energy mix and our energy security. I will not be influenced by the preoccupations of bourgeois-left academics; I will be inspired by the will of the people.
George Hollingbery (Meon Valley) (Con)
5. What recent assessment he has made of the role of reduction in demand in ensuring the UK’s security of energy supply in the long term.
Sandra Osborne (Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock) (Lab)
10. What recent assessment he has made of levels of investment in clean energy infrastructure.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Mr John Hayes)
The electricity market reform White Paper, published in July 2011—I have a copy here for those who have not brought theirs with them—stated that up to £110 billion in investment in the power sector is likely to be required by 2020, of which approximately £60 billion relates to investment in clean energy capacity.
Sandra Osborne
I thank the Minister for that reply and apologise for pre-empting it. When he addressed 400 industry delegates at the renewable energy UK conference the other day, he spoke of the need for clarity and certainty in renewable energy policy to provide the right framework for investment. He then told the media that enough is enough when it comes to wind power. Which of those mixed messages represents the Government’s policy and what will he do to retrieve the situation, which has caused such uncertainty in the industry?
Mr Hayes
The commitment to renewable technology is an essential part of delivering the energy mix that I mentioned earlier. It is absolutely right that we should have renewables as part of that mix. That builds sustainability and resilience and helps us to meet our emissions targets. It is also good for consumers, because that mix guarantees our energy security.
Miss Anne McIntosh (Thirsk and Malton) (Con)
Does my hon. Friend agree that Drax provides both clean and renewable energy? Will he see fit to increase the level of investment in and Government support for biomass, which is helping to feed renewable energy into Drax and helping growers in Thirsk, Malton and Filey at the same time?
Mr Hayes
The principle of using biomass as a feed of the kind that my hon. Friend suggests will have had a boost since, as Minister, I have cut the red tape and made it more straightforward. I share her view. I did it very quickly, because I like to do things quickly when it is in the public interest so to do.
Tom Greatrex (Rutherglen and Hamilton West) (Lab/Co-op)
Clean energy infrastructure also includes carbon capture and storage, which is widely supported on both sides of the House. The coalition agreement, lauded by all members of the ministerial team and, I am sure, everyone sitting behind them this morning, made a commitment to fund four commercial scale CCS projects in the UK. Does that commitment still stand?
Mr Hayes
The competition to which the hon. Gentleman refers will allow a record level of investment in carbon capture and storage, in which Britain is a world leader. It is critical that in dealing with emissions we recognise what my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has said and what the hon. Gentleman has acknowledged, which is that carbon capture and storage can be a vital part of those ambitions.
Tom Greatrex
I am sure the industry, which has expressed some concern over the past couple of days, will have heard the failure of the Minister to confirm whether those four projects will still be funded. Is he not concerned that without any firm commitment on funding by the UK Government, the prospects of securing the European Commission funding under the NER300 funding stream, which the UK did so much to put in place, are limited? Does he not understand the anxiety of those seeking to develop CCS that his failure to give a clear signal to the Commission could jeopardise access to up to €600 million, which could make the difference, as he says, in ensuring that our lead in CCS is realised?
Mr Hayes
The hon. Gentleman knows that the process was competitive. It was described by the spokesman from that sector as “very good news”. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State took a personal interest in this matter because of its significance and he used his usual endeavour and diligence to ensure that we got it right. He personifies that approach in running this Department.
Mr Henry Bellingham (North West Norfolk) (Con)
Does the Minister share my support for the recent and very high level of investment in clean offshore energy off the coast of Lincolnshire, Norfolk and the Wash? Does he agree that it makes no sense for communities in those coastal counties to have controversial onshore wind farms forced on them unless there is overwhelming public support?
Mr Hayes
My hon. Friend will know that, since I became the Minister, we have called for evidence on both the community benefit and cost of onshore wind. It is critical that communities see that benefit and feel a sense of ownership over developments that affect them. During the process we will of course allow the normal expressions of interest by both proponents and opponents of onshore wind and will then consider them, as the Prime Minister said yesterday. When we have met our current targets, we will have to consider what to do. I suggest, as the Prime Minister has done, that all parties need to have that discussion.
Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)
11. What outcome he will be seeking on climate finance at the UN climate talks in Doha in November 2012.
Chris White (Warwick and Leamington) (Con)
12. What steps his Department is taking to encourage new entrants to the energy market.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Mr John Hayes)
Wider participation is key to a competitive market and to securing the investment we need. The forthcoming energy Bill will reform the electricity market to incentivise new investment in a diverse, low-carbon energy mix.
Chris White
In a few weeks’ time I will have the pleasure of opening the new offices of First Utility in my constituency. It is one of the fastest growing energy companies in the country and a major local employer. It is pioneering new ways to help make household bills cheaper through a range of technologies and is an excellent example of the innovation that new entrants to the energy market can bring. Will the Minister meet me and First Utility to discuss how we can support new entrants into the energy market and boost competition to make household bills cheaper?
Mr Hayes
Just this morning I had a meeting with my diary secretary in which I prioritised just such a visit. It is vital that we allow new entrants into the market, because that will create the competitive pressure to drive down prices. The right hon. Member for Don Valley (Caroline Flint) told the House only last week that that had not happened over the past 15 years, and who was in charge of energy policy then?
Dr Alan Whitehead (Southampton, Test) (Lab)
The Minister will be aware that power purchase agreements are extremely important for the ability of independent low carbon generators to enter the market. Does he share my concern about the fact that power purchase agreements are disappearing from the market and that they will probably totally disappear by 2017? Does that not point to a concentration of generator ownership rather than the ability of low carbon generators to enter the market?
Mr Hayes
The Energy and Climate Change Committee, of which the hon. Gentleman is a member, is concerned about that point. We have called for evidence on exactly that subject, too—and for precisely the reasons that lie behind his question. We want to know what the issues and barriers are.
The hon. Gentleman is right to say that a plural marketplace is essential if we are to create the competitive pressure that I have described. Entry to that marketplace is therefore a priority. Actually, I think that that view is shared across the House.
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)
13. What steps the Government are taking to stimulate the manufacturing of renewable energy technology in the west midlands.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Mr John Hayes)
We have recently set out support levels under the renewables obligation until 2017 and expect that the support will bring forward £20 billion to £25 billion of new investment in that period.
The energy Bill, the landmark measure to which I refer once again, will transform the electricity market, delivering a diverse energy supply and simultaneously stimulating the economy by bolstering jobs and skills.
Mr Cunningham
I remind the Minister that Coventry and the west midlands have a strong history of manufacturing and the potential to be at the forefront of developing and producing green technology. What are the Government doing to ensure that the region can develop the skills required and get the financial support to create the capacity to become a major manufacturer of renewable energy?
Mr Hayes
I know of the hon. Gentleman’s commitment to manufacturing, not only during his time as a Parliamentary Private Secretary but in the work he has done in his constituency and more widely, particularly in the automotive sector.
Just yesterday, I was in discussion with colleagues at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills about this precise matter of ensuring an adequate supply of training and skills to meet the demand of the energy sector. There is more to be done, but it will be achieved best by the expression of that demand in stimulating the right kind of supply—from trainers, further education, higher education and elsewhere. It is about not just new entrants, but upskilling and reskilling too.
Mr Speaker
We are getting a very full insight into the Minister’s working week, for which I am sure we are all extremely grateful.
Jeremy Lefroy (Stafford) (Con)
Alstom, a major Stafford manufacturer, has just announced a welcome investment in tidal energy. Will the Minister please update us on the potential for tidal energy and associated manufacturing in the UK?
Mr Hayes
My hon. Friend will know that I am profoundly interested in renewable technologies that deliver. Tidal energy has immense potential. We have already committed resources to the work being done to get it to a scale on which it could be commercially viable. What my hon. Friend points to in his constituency, backed by his personal support, can only assist us in that practice.
Andrea Leadsom (South Northamptonshire) (Con)
14. What his policy is on onshore wind farms; and if he will make a statement.
Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con)
T9. The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change, my hon. Friend the Member for South Holland and The Deepings (Mr Hayes), has been instrumental in forcing inquiries into the uncompetitiveness of the oil companies in keeping prices high at the pump. Will he also urge the Treasury to stop the 3p planned fuel duty rise in January, which will cost motorists an extra £60 a year?
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Mr John Hayes)
Needless to say, I will not make any commitments above my pay grade or outside my remit, but my hon. Friend has been a doughty campaigner and as a result of that campaign will know that I have taken a series of measures along the lines that he has proposed, in my Department and elsewhere, to ensure that we can meet the objectives that he sets out. I am a Blue Collar Conservative by origin, by inclination and, as you can see, Mr Speaker, by sartorial choice.
Mr David Hamilton (Midlothian) (Lab)
T6. Cockenzie coal-fired power station, in my neighbouring county, will close very shortly. That will be followed by a spate of closures of coal-fired power stations. What discussions is the Minister having about the gap that that will leave and the skills that will be lost in that important industry, and indeed in what we still have of the coal industry?
Mr Hayes
The hon. Gentleman is right that one challenge that the Government and the country face is ensuring that we get sufficient capacity, taking account of closures. It is true that our generating stock is ageing, and there are of course issues to do with the gradual end of coal and an ageing nuclear stock, so capacity is critical. Part of our reforms in the Energy Bill will be to do exactly what he asks and create sufficient incentive for investment to meet that capacity challenge.
Mark Pawsey (Rugby) (Con)
The Rugby Advertiser reports that a local pensioner has been scammed into paying £99 for a device that was claimed to save energy but that, according to Warwickshire trading standards, is dangerous and will not save any money. Will the Minister join me in condemning companies that take advantage in that way of consumers who are concerned about their energy costs?
Mr Hayes
I am looking closely at the community benefits from new capacity, including new nuclear. The right hon. Gentleman is right that part of getting things right in the long term is to examine the effects on communities, which I have spoken about before in the House. We are doing so, and I will respond to him about the particular circumstances that he raises.
Andrew Stunell (Hazel Grove) (LD)
Energy demand management must be based on reducing demand in the home. Will Ministers assure the House that they are working closely with colleagues in the Department for Communities and Local Government to ensure that building standards reflect the need to improve the performance of our homes?
Neil Carmichael (Stroud) (Con)
I, too, welcome Hitachi’s expression of confidence in our nuclear industry, especially as the plans include Gloucestershire. What does the Minister think about the need to develop skills and the labour market to support that infrastructure?
Mr Hayes
When I was the Minister responsible for skills, I convened a meeting that was attended by DECC and Department for Business, Innovation and Skills officials to ensure that we had a clear expression of demand from the industry, and the Government met that demand by talking to skills suppliers to ensure that we attracted new people to the industry and built the skills necessary. We are on the case, and the nuclear skills academy is leading that process. I can assure my hon. Friend that nuclear presents a chance for new jobs and skills as well as being important for our energy security.
Mr Nigel Dodds (Belfast North) (DUP)
Following the reductions in winter fuel payments that the Government have implemented, many senior citizen households are finding it difficult to meet bills, especially for lump-sum payments for home heating oil. What are the Government doing to address that problem?
Mr Speaker
Order. We are extremely grateful to the hon. Lady, but we need a sentence question.