Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how much the Drax power station has received in subsidies for burning wood in each of the last eight years; and if she will make an estimate of the amount of CO2 that was released from its chimneys in that period.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Information is only available on Drax’s support for electricity generation from all types of biomass, (including wood from sustainable sources) and on lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The figures in the table below give the value of the support under the Renewables Obligation scheme for generation from all the types of biomass used by Drax.
Year | Notional value of support under the Renewables Obligation[1] |
2015/16 | £548.1m |
2016/17 | £547.9m |
2017/18 | £399.2m |
2018/19 | £513.3m |
2019/20 | £508.9m |
2020/21 | £508.5m |
2021/22 | £619.7m |
2022/23 | £634.2m[2] |
From 2016 (the start of their support under the Contracts for Difference scheme) to 2023, Drax was paid £1.38bn in net difference payments. The details are published by the Low Carbon Contracts Company on their Data Portal[3].
Drax’s GHG emissions under the Renewables Obligation are available in Ofgem’s sustainability datasets[4]. For the Contracts for Difference scheme, Drax’s avoided GHG emissions are published by the Low Carbon Contracts Company on their Data Portal.
[1] Support under the Renewables Obligation is through tradeable certificates. The figures give the notional value of the support
[2] Provisional figure as all the certificates for 2022/23 may not have been issued yet.
[3] The Low Carbon Contracts Company’s Data Portal is at: https://dp.lowcarboncontracts.uk/dataset/actual-cfd-generation-and-avoided-ghg-emissions/resource/fa730219-fbd2-41b5-9510-ba2b0ff2c1ba
[4] Ofgem’s annual sustainability datasets are at: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-and-social-schemes/renewables-obligation-ro/renewables-obligation-ro-suppliers/biomass-sustainability
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to page 26 of the research paper by Chatham House entitled BECCS deployment: the risks of policies forging ahead, published in October 2021, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies of that paper's findings on the carbon payback period of a mature tree; and whether her Department has made an estimate of the carbon payback period for unabated wood burning.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government views sustainably sourced biomass as low carbon, in line with independent organisations such as the CCC and IPCC, as set out in the Government Biomass Strategy, published in August 2023.
Only biomass that complies with strict sustainability criteria receives support from Government. For forest derived biomass, the criteria includes requirements around sustainable forest management including regeneration rates and sustainable harvesting, requiring that the carbon stock of the forest is not decreased.
In 2024, Government will consult on a cross sectorial sustainability framework to see where we can strengthen the criteria further based on latest evidence.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the average waiting time for passport renewals.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
People are receiving their passports in good time. Between January and August 2023, 99.3% of customers using the standard UK service received their passport within the published processing timeframe of ten weeks.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to support innovation in defence technologies.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The most recent Defence Command Paper highlighted the importance of science, innovation and technology in securing strategic advantage for our Armed Forces. Defence is investing over £6.6 billion in advanced Research and Development, working closely with UK industry and academia, including Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs), to identify and invest in innovative technologies, ensuring we have the capabilities we need to address our most pressing threats.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to increase funding for the police.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
On 31 January, the Government confirmed a total police funding settlement of up to £17.2 billion in 2023/24, an increase of up to £313.8 million when compared to 2022/23.
Since then, the Home Office have announced a further £330 million of in year funding to support forces in managing the costs associated to the 2023/24 pay award. This is in addition to grant increases announced previously at the 2023/24 settlement.
This investment in the policing system continues to support policing, delivering resources to the front line and delivering the high-end capabilities needed in modern policing.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent progress her Department has made on reducing anti-social behaviour.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
On 27 March, the Government launched the Anti-social Behaviour Action Plan (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/anti-social-behaviour-action-plan) ensuring the police, local authorities and other relevant agencies have the powers and tools they need to tackle the blight of anti-social behaviour facing communities across England and Wales.
The plan is backed by £160m of funding. This includes up to £60m to fund an increased police and other uniformed presence to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, targeting hotspots. Initially we are working with 10 police force areas, but from 2024 we will support a hotspot approach across every police force area in England and Wales. We are also providing up to £50m to support the provision of Immediate Justice, by issuing out of court disposals with conditions to swiftly repair any damage – the aim being for them to start within 48 hours of referral. This will start in 10 initial trailblazer police force areas and be rolled out across England and Wales from 2024.
On 6 July, we launched the fifth round of the Safer Streets Fund. Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) across England and Wales will receive a total of £43 million on top of the £120 million already awarded for the previous four rounds of the Safer Streets Fund to continue to deliver crime and anti-social behaviour prevention measures.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that SMEs are paid on time by larger firms.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government is aware that late payment remains a significant problem for small businesses across the country. That is why at the beginning of 2023 the Government launched a review of Cash flow and Prompt Payment, alongside a public consultation on the Payment Performance Regulations. The findings of the review, alongside the consultation response, will be published later in 2023.
The Government will use the findings of this review to improve the Payment Performance Regulations, the Small Business Commissioner, and the Prompt Payment Code to improve payment culture in the UK, to reduce late payments and its impact on SMEs.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to support business exports.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government’s Export Strategy, ‘Made in the UK, Sold to the World’, focuses on the challenges UK businesses face when exporting and sets out a 12-point plan which targets barriers to trade and helps businesses at every stage of their export journey. My Department continues to support companies through our network of domestic and overseas trade advisers, sector specialists, Export Support Service, Export Academy, International Markets network as well as through UK Export Finance. We are also helping businesses to benefit from new free trade agreements and working across Government to reduce barriers to exporting and simplify border processes.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the effectiveness of the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy.
Answered by James Heappey
I said to the House in May that we aimed to process all outstanding initial ARAP applications by the end of August. We now have just over 1,800 complex cases remaining from more than 93,000 principal applications received. We have issued over 58,000 decisions to applicants in the past three months alone, giving them the clarity they deserve. We continue to move at best pace to process the remaining applications.
We also continue to move eligible Afghans from Afghanistan to the safety of third countries at best pace and have relocated over an estimated 12,200 people to the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of the Energy Bill Support Scheme on businesses (a) in Woking constituency and (b) across the country.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Businesses, including those within the Woking constituency and across the UK, have already benefitted from the Energy Bill Relief Scheme which ended on 31 March and provided over £7.4 billion of support.
Businesses experiencing high energy costs will continue to get a discount on gas and electricity bills under the Energy Bills Discount Scheme (EBDS) until 31 March 2024, including the higher level of support for eligible Energy and Trade Intensive Industries (ETII) and domestic heat network customers on commercial contracts.