Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what representations he has received on the potential merits of requiring search engines to change their algorithms to reduce the visibility of illegal streaming websites.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
My noble Friend the Minister of State for Energy and Intellectual Property, Baroness Neville-Rolfe, chairs regular roundtable meetings between the UK’s leading search engine providers, representatives of the music and film industries, and government officials.
Since the instigation of these roundtables, Google, Yahoo! and Bing have all taken steps to reduce the prominence of copyright infringing websites in their search results. These steps have included algorithm changes as well as changes to the autocomplete suggestions offered to users.
The discussions are supported by research undertaken by OFCOM which has shown a decrease in the prominence of the most infringing websites (as measured by the number of notifications Google have received about infringing content for those sites).
Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the recommendations of the Creative Industries Council in its report entitled Create Together, published in July 2016, on clarifying the role of safe harbours and rights holders' remuneration.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
The Create Together strategy produced by the industry members of the Creative Industries Council is a strategy for building on the economic success of the UK’s creative sector. It is one which the Government supports. Government is currently reviewing specific recommendations within the strategy, including on safe harbour. We are strongly committed to working constructively with industry on these issues.
The Government agrees that it should not be possible to benefit from encouraging the posting of copyright infringing content through safe harbours, and that the rules governing who is responsible for such content should be clear. In developing the UK’s copyright framework going forward, we will consider whether the current situation is providing the right mix of incentives and protections.
Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, when he plans to respond to the Waterson Report on Secondary Ticketing, published on 22 May 2016.
Answered by Nick Boles
The Government will publish its response to Professor Waterson’s independent review in due course.
Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what consideration she has given to extending the support of biomass after 2027 to treat it equally with other low-carbon technologies.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We see the use of conversions of coal to biomass as a transitional technology. It has played a useful role in decarbonising the grid while other, lower carbon forms of energy generation, such as offshore wind continue to develop and lower their costs. Government support for biomass conversions are restricted to 2027 under the Renewables Obligation and Contract for Difference, however all other biomass technologies are eligible for the full 15 year life of the contract. We have no current plans to change those dates.
Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the Answer of 12 May 2016 to Question 36652 on biofuel, whether her Department has undertaken to consider whether it is appropriate for biomass conversions to compete alongside offshore wind or the allocation pot for established technologies.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have not set out our plans in respect of biomass conversions. We will set out more details in relation to future Contracts for Difference (CfD) allocation rounds in due course.
Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when her Department intends to publish its report on the whole system costs of different sources and methods of low-carbon and renewable energy generation.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following peer review by experts in the field of whole system impacts, DECC will publish the methodology report of the Whole System Impacts of Electricity Generation Technologies project in due course, taking into account timing restrictions relating to purdah(s). The report sets out a comprehensive framework to define whole system impacts and their components and drivers, which can be applied to conventional, low-carbon and renewable large- and small-scale technologies.
Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that ancillary services, including black start, are available to the national grid following the removal of coal-fired power stations from the system; and who will be responsible for providing those services.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Grid ancillary services, including Black Start, are procured from generators that have the capability to meet the service requirements. National Grid assesses the suitability of different technologies from a Black Start perspective on an ongoing basis and any generator technology can be considered as a Black Start provider.
As we drive forward our decarbonisation strategy, DECC is working with National Grid to ensure that the Black Start strategy remains resilient and cost effective. Part of this work includes National Grid assessing which new technologies may be suitable for Black Start in the future and engaging these providers to understand the feasibility of achieving this.
National Grid is also investigating alternative approaches to the Black Start strategy and is taking forward the recommendations of two independent consultant reports commissioned in 2015. Both reports are available on the Energy Networks Associations’ website via the Smarter Networks Portal.
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Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment her Department has made of the case for including (a) biomass energy and (b) biomass conversions from former coal-fired stations alongside offshore wind in future Contract for Difference auctions; and what assessment has been made of the case for evaluating bids in such auctions on a whole system costs basis.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Biomass can be used as a feedstock in Dedicated Biomass with CHP, Advanced Conversion Technologies and Anaerobic Digestion plants. Those three technologies are already eligible to compete alongside offshore wind in the CFD allocation pot for “less established” technologies.
The Government will consider whether it is appropriate for biomass conversions to compete alongside offshore wind or the allocation pot for “established” technologies in due course.
DECC recognises the importance of considering the whole system impacts (both costs and benefits) of different electricity technologies when formulating future government policy, since it is a crucial element in delivering secure, clean and affordable energy to consumers.
Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will make an assessment of the feasibility of using biomass conversion and energy generation to mitigate job losses from the closure of coal-fired power stations.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Reducing our reliance on coal generation is an important part of decarbonising the electricity system. The Capacity Market will ensure continued security of supply while the Contract for Difference scheme will support cost effective low carbon electricity; the new investment brought forward by both schemes will help create new jobs.
Asked by: Nigel Adams (Conservative - Selby and Ainsty)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what consideration her Department has given to the implications of whole-system costs of different forms of renewable energy generation (a) generally and (b) in future Contract for Difference auctions.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
DECC recognises the importance of considering the whole system impacts (both costs and benefits) of different electricity technologies when formulating future government policy, since it is a crucial element in delivering secure, clean and affordable energy to consumers.
In order to continue to improve its evidence base in this area and inform future policy developments, DECC commissioned Frontier Economics to undertake a project on the Whole System Impacts of Electricity Generation Technologies.
The core aim of the project was to set out a comprehensive framework to define whole system impacts and their components and drivers, which can be applied to conventional, low-carbon and renewable large- and small-scale technologies. Following peer review by experts in the field of whole system impacts, DECC will publish the resulting methodology report in due course, taking into account timing restrictions relating to purdah(s).
Subsequently, the theoretical framework will be used to further systematise DECC’s modelling capability. Given the complex modelling involved and the need for a rigorous quality assurance process to ensure the analysis is robust, this is currently ongoing.
Once the project is completed, DECC will be able to draw on the improved evidence base developed through this project to contribute to informing future electricity market policy development, including for CFDs. Given that the electricity system continues to evolve, it is important that DECC reaches well-evidenced and robust long-term solutions.