Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between John Lamont and Selaine Saxby

Wednesday 29th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[John Lamont]

I had the pleasure of meeting the Cabinet Secretary from the Scottish Government this morning, together with the leader of Falkirk Council, to discuss the situation at Grangemouth. The Scottish Government and the UK Government are working together, hand in hand, to protect as many jobs as possible. The Scottish cluster is expected to include at least one project located in Grangemouth, which is welcome news.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

8. Whether his Department has had recent discussions with the Scottish Government on supporting productive forestry planting in Scotland.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (John Lamont)]

I very much welcome this question, which is timely in National Tree Week. Reforestation is a crucial way for us all to reduce carbon emissions and improve biodiversity across the country. Although this policy is devolved, the UK Government continue to work with the devolved Administrations to deliver UK-wide change in tree planting and establishment.

[Selaine Saxby]

Conifers, which are the main species planted for productive forestry, account for just under half the area of UK woodland. Does my hon. Friend agree that there should now be a UK-wide target for 60% of new planting to be productive forestry, allowing Scotland to lead the way in delivering a secure supply of raw materials to support British manufacturing and construction?

[John Lamont]

I thank my hon. Friend for her excellent question. There are high ambitions across the United Kingdom to increase forestry planting. I agree that we must secure a steady supply of the raw materials needed to support Britain’s construction and manufacturing industries.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between John Lamont and Selaine Saxby

Wednesday 16th November 2022 Commons Chamber

[John Lamont]

The Prime Minister has been crystal clear about the need to put integrity at the heart of his Government. It is also certain that the people of Scotland can trust this United Kingdom Government to deliver for Scotland, whether through the covid-19 vaccines or the record £41 billion budget for the Scottish Government. This is what really matters to my constituents in the Scottish Borders and to people across Scotland.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

6. What discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on Scotland’s role in delivering the UK’s target of 5 GW of floating offshore wind energy by 2030.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (John Lamont)]

The Government recognise the important role that infrastructure plays in supporting the commercialisation of floating offshore wind at scale across the United Kingdom, including in the Celtic sea, and are committed to building capacity in infrastructure and supply chains to support the growing offshore wind industry.

[Selaine Saxby]

My hon. Friend will no doubt be aware of the Kincardine floating wind farm off the coast of Aberdeen, but he might not be aware that the fabrication of its turbines took place in Rotterdam because UK ports do not have the capacity to do that work. Does he agree that, to realise the potential of this industry, investment in port infrastructure is crucial and that the lion’s share of this investment should be in the Celtic sea?

[John Lamont]

I commend my hon. Friend for raising this issue, as it is an important part of the Scottish economy. Scotland is a world leader in floating offshore wind, and it is home to both the world’s first and the world’s largest commercial floating wind projects—Hywind Scotland and Kincardine. The ScotWind leasing round, announced earlier this year, includes nearly 18 GW of potential floating wind capacity, underlining the scale of the opportunity.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between John Lamont and Selaine Saxby

Thursday 14th July 2022 Commons Chamber

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

3. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to mitigate increases in food prices.

[John Lamont (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) (Con)]

10. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to mitigate increases in food prices.