10-point Plan: Six Months On
Debate between Kwasi Kwarteng and Felicity Buchan(3 years, 6 months ago)
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Kwasi Kwarteng
When I was Energy Minister, I wanted it to appear in the first quarter and I think I made public commitments to that. The hon. Gentleman will understand that many of the issues have been discussed across Government, and I am very confident that the heat and building strategy will be published soon. I cannot, however, give him a firm cast-iron date on this.
Felicity Buchan (Kensington) (Con)
I welcome the focus on electric vehicles in the 10-point plan and the £1.3 billion investment in accelerating the roll-out of the grid infrastructure. Does my right hon. Friend agree that we need a comprehensive network of ultra-rapid charging points in order to accelerate the uptake of electric vehicles and to get rid of a lot of the range anxiety?
Kwasi Kwarteng
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. When MPs talk to their constituents, we hear them talk about range anxiety, and it is critical that we have the right charging infrastructure to drive forward the EV roll-out. We have committed public funds to this, but I am very happy to discuss with her, as it is obviously critically important. I feel that we are in a good place, but I would be very interested to hear her ideas.
UK Steel Production: Greensill Capital
Debate between Kwasi Kwarteng and Felicity Buchan(3 years, 8 months ago)
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Kwasi Kwarteng
The right hon. Lady will know that I cannot possibly comment on that, because it is part of an ongoing series of discussions. We do not really know the full extent of the impact of Greensill’s collapse on the British economy. We are looking into it very closely and looking at which companies have been affected, but until that further investigation we cannot possibly comment on the extent of the liability.
Felicity Buchan (Kensington) (Con)
One of the lessons of the pandemic has been that we need a robust domestic industrial strategy and we cannot be dependent on imports—either of final products or through the supply chain—from China or anywhere else. Does my right hon. Friend agree that steel is an integral component of that industrial strategy—and, with time, decarbonised steel?
Kwasi Kwarteng
I reassure my hon. Friend that the fact that we published the industrial decarbonisation strategy only last week suggests to me, and is a signal to the world of, how seriously we take the strategic impact and necessity of steel, and the net zero commitment.
Vauxhall at Ellesmere Port and Battery Manufacturing Strategy
Debate between Kwasi Kwarteng and Felicity Buchan(3 years, 9 months ago)
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Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.
Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.
This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record
Kwasi Kwarteng
I think the hon. Gentleman is quite right. Levelling up is clearly heart and centre of what the Government are trying to do. We are doing all we can to get the right result for the people of Ellesmere Port and also for the UK. It is a hugely significant investment.
Felicity Buchan (Kensington) (Con)
Does my right hon. Friend agree that we not only need additional battery capacity but battery recycling facilities, so we can sustainably re-use the batteries and, if necessary, dispose of them?
Kwasi Kwarteng
My hon. Friend is quite right. The UK Government are absolutely committed not only to the manufacturing of these critically important batteries, but to recycling. We want to see a circular economy for electric vehicles. If we attain that, we will surely maximise the economic and environmental opportunities of the transition to zero emission vehicles.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Kwasi Kwarteng and Felicity Buchan(4 years, 1 month ago)
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The Minister for Business, Energy and Clean Growth (Kwasi Kwarteng)
The hon. Lady will know that the UK’s net zero target is a world-leading initiative. Indeed, it was striking that this month China, Japan and South Korea committed themselves to net-zero carbon targets.
Felicity Buchan
I am a big proponent of electric vehicles. Will my right hon. Friend consider regulatory reform to encourage investment in the electric vehicle infrastructure, such as vehicle-to-grid charging?
Kwasi Kwarteng
My hon. Friend will know that we are taking considerable action to encourage consumers to buy electric vehicles, and we are also investing in the necessary infrastructure. So far we have invested £30 million to support vehicle-to-grid technology, and we will regulate next year to ensure that consumers benefit from smart-charging their electric vehicles.