Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps she is taking to strengthen offshore wind foundation structure supply chains.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Government remains committed to strengthening and prioritising resilient and sustainable offshore wind supply chains in the UK. We have set out a package of support for offshore wind supply chains worth up to £1 billion.
Government, through Great British Energy (GBE) is also establishing a Deepwater Wind Commercialisation Programme in partnership with FLOWEX, to unlock the industrial opportunity from the next frontier of offshore wind deployment.
Additionally, the UK-Japan Offshore Wind Industrial Compact, developed in close partnership with GBE, will drive up to £9bn into the UK economy over the next decade and help to scale floating offshore wind.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
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 potential impact of the Clean Industry Bonus in Allocation Round 7 on offshore wind foundation structure manufacturers in the UK.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Clean Industry Bonus is intended to support investment in cleaner and more resilient offshore wind supply chains. In Allocation Round 7, £204 million of funding was awarded and is expected to leverage up to £3.4 billion of private investment across a range of offshore wind supply chain activities, including foundation structure manufacturers. This investment will help strengthen domestic industrial capability, support jobs in some of the most deprived areas of the country, and support the delivery of economic growth across the UK.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will provide a list of (a) successful applicants for the Clean Industry Bonus in Allocation Round 7, (b) the monetary value of each award and (c) a breakdown of the proposals by investment type.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government intends to publish data on the Allocation Round 7 Clean Industry Bonus in due course and once investments are confirmed, including a list of which manufacturing facilities benefited from an award. However, at present this is commercially sensitive information pertaining to live procurements. Disclosure of information on individual successful applicants, award values and investment proposals at this time could prejudice commercial interests and future competitive processes.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps she is taking to increase the proportion of data centres that locate in areas with excess renewables capacity.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Data centres can bring down constraint costs if they locate behind existing transmission constraints where they can make use of renewable generation that would otherwise be curtailed. This is why government recently consulted on reforms to align data centre connections to regional infrastructure targets, delivering on government’s ambitions for digital infrastructure and AI, while balancing the needs of our energy system.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent discussions her Department has had with counterparts in His Majesty's Treasury on the Hydrogen Strategy update.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero have engaged with His Majesty’s Treasury throughout development of the Hydrogen Strategy. The renewed strategy will set out Government’s vision and objectives for hydrogen, and how we intend to work with industry to continue to transform ambition into action.
We plan to publish the Hydrogen Strategy, alongside a package of other hydrogen policy documents, as soon as possible this year.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to help households adapt to rising temperatures.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Warm Homes Plan sets out our approach to upgrading the nation’s homes, including climate adaptation. Over this Parliament, we intend to introduce the most appropriate, cost-effective passive cooling measures into our capital schemes, to support low-income consumers and those in social housing.
Passive cooling measures include internal blinds, external shutters, reflective window films, and cooler building materials. These enhance thermal comfort in hot weather and, when paired with active cooling, help mitigate energy bill increases.
We recognise that in some cases active cooling is needed to protect those most vulnerable to overheating and have taken steps to enable access to clean heat technologies that can also provide cooling functionality when necessary. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme will provide £2,500 grants for air‑to‑air heat pumps, which can also provide cooling.
The Government also embed overheating considerations through the Decent Homes Standard (DHS), Awaab’s Law, and the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS).
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking with his international counterparts to help reduce global emissions.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We have restored UK international leadership through ambitious domestic action and global engagement: committing to reduce emissions by at least 81% by 2035 and deliver clean power by 2030, launching the Global Clean Power Alliance at the G20, working at COP30 with partners to cut methane, phase out coal, scale clean energy investment and protect forests among other areas.
We will continue this work at COP31.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that hydrogen projects supported by Government policy maximise UK supply chain participation and support domestic manufacturing and jobs.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As set out in the Clean Energy Industries Sector Plan, the Government is committed to building UK manufacturing capacity and jobs. This commitment is demonstrated by the £86.5m proposed package to support ITM Power’s 1GW electrolyser manufacturing expansion in Sheffield, expected to support over 400 jobs, alongside wider support available to UK manufacturers from the public finance institutions, including Great British Energy’s £1 billion Supply Chain Fund.
We welcome the hydrogen industry’s voluntary commitment to 50% local content and are exploring how future hydrogen allocation rounds can further support UK supply chains, including through a planned call for evidence.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the time taken to publish the UK Hydrogen Strategy on the delivery timelines of Hydrogen Allocation Round 2 projects, including those in Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend constituency.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Delays to the renewed Hydrogen Strategy, to Hydrogen Allocation Round 2, and to other decisions have been frustrating. We understand that many projects are at critical stages, and that certainty is very important to help businesses plan and manage resourcing and expectations of third parties.
We are working hard across government to start the Invite to Offer stage of HAR2 as soon as possible and will be in touch with projects when this commences. We are committed to announcing successful HAR2 projects in 2026.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the time taken for hydrogen policy decisions on levels of private sector investment in UK hydrogen projects being redirected to international competitors.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We have established a world leading funding, policy and regulatory environment for investment into the hydrogen sector. Through funding for policies like the Hydrogen Production Business Model (HPBM), the government continues to support the rollout of hydrogen production to meet demand across sectors requiring hydrogen to decarbonise.
We plan to publish a renewed Hydrogen Strategy, alongside a package of other policy documents, as soon as possible this year. We are actively exploring all options for how we can provide the clarity that industry needs to make progress on delivering hydrogen projects in the UK.