Lord Barker of Battle
Main Page: Lord Barker of Battle (Conservative - Life peer)
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
The target will be met at no overall cost to the public purse. Where savings cannot be made through no-cost measures and behavioural change, Departments will be responsible for finding any additional investment in their existing budgets to deliver the Government’s commitment, or using innovative shared saving contracts or similar energy service company—ESCO— arrangements. Showing real leadership in this area is an important part of our plan to be the greenest Government ever and will help us to deliver savings from reduced energy bills, but as I have said, it is only the first step in a long-term strategy to reduce Government emissions and increase efficiency across the whole public sector.
Mr Speaker
Order. I am sorry, but these ministerial answers are simply too long. Something has got to be done for next time. Let us get it right.
Gregg McClymont
In opposition, the coalition parties demanded a 10% reduction year on year in CO2 emissions across the public sector. In government, they now pledge these reductions only across the central Government estate. Why the retreat?
Gregory Barker
The hon. Gentleman is slightly misinformed as to what we promised. We said that there was a clear need for Government to take responsibility for getting their own house in order, which the previous Administration signally failed to do in 13 years. We are committed to 10% in the coming year, but we see it as part of a much more ambitious longer-term strategy across the public sector.
Andrew Stephenson (Pendle) (Con)
7. What steps he plans to take to introduce the proposed green deal on domestic energy efficiency; and if he will make a statement.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
In the emergency Budget the coalition Government confirmed their intention to establish a green deal for all households and for business. The green deal will enable individuals to invest in home energy-efficiency improvements that can pay for themselves from the savings in energy bills, without any up-front costs and without their incurring any form of personal debt or charge on their property. We have committed in the Queen’s speech to legislate in a first Session energy Bill for finance tied to the energy meter, which should allow for the full green deal to be available by 2012. Only yesterday the Government announced that we are extending the carbon emissions reduction target through to the end of 2012.
Andrew Stephenson
I thank my hon. Friend for that very full answer. In my constituency many households are living in fuel poverty. Will my hon. Friend explain exactly how households will be able directly to access the grant to help tackle fuel poverty and reduce fuel bills?
Gregory Barker
The green deal is not a grant; it is designed to be repaid through the savings made on bills over 25 years. The beauty of the green deal is that, unlike any previous proposal, it will be totally unrelated to the household’s ability to pay. It will simply be repaid, regardless of the credit scoring or wealth status of the individuals in the household. Of course, other measures will always be needed to make sure that fuel-vulnerable and hard-to-treat properties have direct financial support.
Mr Geoffrey Robinson (Coventry North West) (Lab)
Is the Minister aware that another source of useful efficiency savings in the domestic sector would be ground source heat pumps, as part of the renewables initiative? I see the Secretary of State nodding. Through his Minister, I can tell him that a company in my constituency which is very big in this area has jobs that it can create and orders in hand that it is ready to commit to. It seeks a meeting with the Secretary of State; it is not for the Minister to reply on that, but I would be grateful if the matter could be taken seriously in the Department.
Gregory Barker
We are very supportive of new technology, and I am well aware of the potential of ground source heat pumps. We want to enable a whole universe of new technologies to be part of the renewables solution. If the hon. Gentleman’s constituents would like to meet me, I would be very happy to do so.
Mr Charles Kennedy (Ross, Skye and Lochaber) (LD)
8. What recent assessment he has made of the potential for former onshore oil fabrication construction sites to be used for construction activity relating to sustainable forms of energy; and if he will make a statement.
Greg Mulholland (Leeds North West) (LD)
13. What his Department’s priorities are for the implementation of the EU’s carbon emissions reduction target of 30% by 2020.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
The Government believe that despite the current challenging outlook for a binding global agreement on carbon emissions, the EU should be taking a more ambitious leadership role. We will be urging our European partners to agree an early EU move to the 30% reduction target. That would put Europe firmly on a path to a low-carbon economy, stimulating innovation and efficiency and meeting the twin challenges of climate change and energy security. The details of how the EU would implement a higher target are yet to be agreed.
Greg Mulholland
I thank the Minister for that answer and for the leadership that the Government are giving on this issue. Can he give an indication of the realistic possibility of the EU’s actually hitting that target; and are other countries as committed to it as we are in this country?
Gregory Barker
I think it is fair to say that we are taking a leadership role. There are concerns among other partners about moving to a more ambitious target, but we will be playing a very positive and constructive role in Europe, and we hope to persuade them of our strong argument.
Tristram Hunt (Stoke-on-Trent Central) (Lab)
May I urge the Minister to come to Stoke-on-Trent in the near future to talk to the British Ceramics Confederation and pottery businesses to see how they are implementing their carbon reductions while trying to remain competitive in an increasingly globalised market?
Gregory Barker
I would be very happy to come to Stoke-on-Trent. It is important that as well as having an ambitious target we understand its impact, particularly on manufacturing industry and efficiency in a global marketplace.
Martin Horwood (Cheltenham) (LD)
One of the most important European initiatives for our future energy supply and the efficient implementation of renewable energy is the European super-grid. The previous Labour Government equivocated over the super-grid; what is the view of this Government?
Gregory Barker
We can see the absolute merits of a super-grid, but we do not yet have a fully evolved policy. I am sure the hon. Gentleman will play a key role in helping that policy emerge.
Mr Mike Weir (Angus) (SNP)
14. What recent discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on carbon pricing; and if he will make a statement.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
The current carbon price is simply not providing a sufficient incentive for low-carbon UK investment. That is one of the reasons why we are pushing for the EU to increase its target for cutting emissions to a 30% reduction by 2020. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State discussed that when he met our European counterparts at the Environment Council on 11 June.
Mr Weir
I thank the Minister for that answer, but is not the truth that the floor in the carbon price is a way of giving a hidden subsidy to new nuclear power stations? Given the difficulties that already exist in the emissions trading scheme with the free permits being given to heavy industry, how will he convince European partners to go along with the idea? If he cannot, is it the Government’s intention to introduce a carbon floor price in the UK alone?
Gregory Barker
My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the Budget that we would publish plans for a UK carbon floor price in the autumn. It is a key part of our plans for a transition to a low-carbon economy. We see that transition as an advantage and a competitive economic opportunity for the UK, but critical to that is providing a long-term strategic framework for industry to invest with confidence and certainty.
Mark Menzies (Fylde) (Con)
19. What steps he is taking to encourage the development of wave and tidal energy technology in the UK.
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
We are committed to harnessing the tremendous benefits that a successful wave and tidal renewable energy sector can bring to the UK and are considering specific measures, such as marine energy parks, to achieve that.
Mark Menzies
Will the Minister also take steps to ensure that, when it comes to wave and tidal power, Britain leads the world in that technology, and that we do not allow the technology and the jobs to go overseas?
Gregory Barker
The hon. Gentleman makes a key point. Under the last Government, 95% of the infrastructure and turbines for one of the largest offshore wind projects was built abroad. We cannot allow that to happen, and we have a policy of marine parks to ensure that that does not happen with this nascent, potentially world-beating British technology.
Nia Griffith (Llanelli) (Lab)
Will the Minister reaffirm the commitment by his Government to the Severn estuary tidal project to make genuine use of the tidal power there? Can he give a progress statement on the consultation to date?
Gregory Barker
I understand the hon. Lady’s interest in this potentially important project. Ministers are currently considering the evidence from the two-year cross-Government Severn tidal power feasibility study with a view to deciding whether the Government can support a tidal power scheme on the Severn estuary, and if so, on what terms. I cannot say anything today, but we expect to make an announcement shortly.
Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch) (Con)
T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.
Guy Opperman (Hexham) (Con)
The timber industry is a significant employer in Hexham. All of us support wood biomass, but there is currently a cross-party team, with Members from both the Labour Benches and our own, seeking to change the distorted energy subsidy for wood biomass. Would the ministerial team meet the cross-party team?
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)
We are very clear that wood biomass has a key role to play, particularly in local energy economies, which we want to see developed to encourage a greater link between local communities and the energy that they consume—coppicing, for example, has great biodiversity as well as low-carbon advantages—so I would happily meet my hon. Friend and his team.
Mark Lazarowicz (Edinburgh North and Leith) (Lab/Co-op)
Will the Secretary of State confirm that no decision has yet been taken on the location of the headquarters of the proposed green investment bank? That being so, does he agree that Edinburgh would be an ideal location, particularly given what he just said about ensuring that green investment is not focused just in the south-east of England?
Amber Rudd (Hastings and Rye) (Con)
Is the Secretary of State aware that some extraordinary technological advances are being made by British private companies? One in particular—Marshall-Tufflex in my constituency—would like to come and see Ministers to show them the advances that it has made that could help with general carbon reduction.
Gregory Barker
As my hon. Friend knows, I have visited Marshall-Tufflex, which has some interesting and exciting products that could be a great help across the Government estate; indeed, I would be delighted to see the company while in office and in government.
David Simpson (Upper Bann) (DUP)
What discussions has the Minister had with his colleagues in relation to oil or gas supplies from the Falkland Islands?