Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Nusrat Ghani and Alex Cunningham

Thursday 7th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[Ms Ghani]

There has not really been a loss in the market share. I have talked about what is happening internationally. We appreciate that small and medium-sized enterprises may not have the resources they need to export into new markets. That is why we have the UK Export Academy, international trade advisers, Help to Grow and the export support service. We are also looking at what trade barriers we can break down and bust to make it even easier for SMEs to access new markets through the trade deals secured by the Secretary of State.

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

2. What steps she is taking to help support the steel industry.

[The Minister for Industry and Economic Security (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

Our commitment to the UK steel sector is clear. The Government are contributing up to £500 million in a joint investment with Tata Steel. We are in talks with British Steel following our generous offers of support. We have delivered more than £730 million in energy costs relief since 2013, and the British industry supercharger is coming soon. We updated our procurement policy note to ensure we are procuring more in the UK, and we are trying to do everything we can to continue to support the steel sector.

[Alex Cunningham]

We are all disappointed that the Government, having abandoned Teesside steel several years ago, are now ready to give up on primary steelmaking in the UK and to rely on recycled material utilising electric arc furnaces. I am pleased to hear that Teesside is pencilled in for one of them, but not so pleased that there have been attempts locally to circumvent proper procedures to secure planning consent. Will the Minister look into that? More importantly, will she confirm that the Government have a final copper-bottomed agreement with the industry that the furnace will definitely be built on Teesside?

[Ms Ghani]

A number of the issues that the hon. Gentleman raises are fundamentally locally. We work closely with Mayor Ben Houchen, who has done a remarkable amount of work for his part of the country. The reality is that the steel sector was placed in an area of uncertainty for some time. We were able to provide support for Tata, which has ensured that the steelworks continue at Port Talbot. We provided the largest grant ever made available to steel, and we are now in conversation with British Steel. That is what it means to have a long- term steel strategy to ensure that steelmaking continues here in the UK.

British Steel

Debate between Nusrat Ghani and Alex Cunningham

Wednesday 8th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Ms Ghani]

I of course agree with my hon. Friend’s first point: there is nobody more vocal about steel than my hon. Friend the Member for Scunthorpe (Holly Mumby-Croft). We have had a number of programmes in place to support the steel sector, because it has a number of challenges, as it has in many continental European countries. Fundamentally, Putin’s invasion of Ukraine caused energy costs to skyrocket, and we had in place an energy costs relief scheme for the steel sector, which has been worth up to £730 million since 2013. We now have the supercharger in place; I have spoken about the steel procurement policy note to ensure that there is more UK steel procured in UK markets; and, obviously, we provided support for Tata recently and Celsa previously. We are doing everything that we can—with my hon. Friend the Member for Scunthorpe, of course—to get the best deal possible for Scunthorpe, but these are commercial decisions and they are ongoing.

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

It is clear from today’s comments that the Government are set to abandon more than 2,000 steelworkers in Scunthorpe, just as they abandoned over 3,000 on Teesside eight years ago. That said, I too welcome the news of a new arc furnace for Redcar, but let me give the Minister yet another chance to answer the question from the hon. Member for Scunthorpe (Holly Mumby-Croft) and others: are the Government really going to settle for recycled steel and foreign imports, and consign virgin steelmaking in the UK to history?

[Ms Ghani]

Recycled steel can be recycled infinite times, so it does a huge amount for the circular economy. Because of the way technology has moved on, steel can now be used in many more sectors. We have a huge surplus of scrap steel, which we end up exporting to countries such as Turkey, Bangladesh and Pakistan. We could be reusing that in the UK economy. But as I said, these are commercial decisions and nothing has been concluded. The statement put out by British Steel was a plan or a proposal.

British Bioethanol Industry

Debate between Nusrat Ghani and Alex Cunningham

Wednesday 16th January 2019 Westminster Hall

[Ms Ghani]

That is an interesting way of responding to how the business environment is dealing with global issues beyond what the Government may or may not have intended to do, so I do not accept that point.

It is clear that UK producers of bioethanol from wheat have faced challenging market conditions, due in part to high wheat prices following a hot summer, and a low bioethanol price—that may in some way answer the hon. Gentleman’s question. However, it is by no means clear that an E10 mandate would address all the challenges that the UK bioethanol industry has faced. It is also clear that the introduction of E10 is not without barriers, including the need to take into account the concerns of a significant number of owners of vehicles that are not compatible with E10—that point was raised earlier in the debate. To be successful, it is vital that any introduction of E10 is backed by fuel suppliers and consumers alike.

Since its inception, the policy on biofuels in the UK has been complex and not without controversy. Immediately after the renewable transport fuel obligation scheme—RTFO—was set in law in 2007, the Gallagher review into the indirect effects of biofuel production was published. It became clear that to maintain faith in the emissions reductions achieved and to retain consumer buy-in, we would have to address the negative indirect effects of certain biofuels. To reward fuels that may perform worse than the fossil fuels they replace would have undermined the rationale of a scheme designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

It was with those challenges in mind that the Department jointly established a transport energy taskforce with the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership, to consider how biofuels can contribute to meeting our climate change commitments in the context of measures introduced to address the negative indirect impacts of some biofuels.

[Alex Cunningham]

The Minister said a few minutes ago that some cars might not be compatible with E10 or even E5. Of course that is the case, but there are always alternatives at the petrol stations pump: diesel, fuel with bioethanol included or ordinary unleaded petrol. I cannot see that as the barrier that she described.

[Ms Ghani]

I do not think I described it as a barrier but a challenge. We must understand needs and impacts on consumers, which is why we should not rush, but ensure that what we do has a positive impact on all people.

--- Later in debate ---

[Ms Ghani]

The hon. Gentleman is trying to tease out a statement from me, when he knows that he has to wait for the consultation to get the response that he wants. I thank him for his tricky intervention, but he will have to wait for the consultation response to get the answer.

The Government agree that the aim must be to reduce emissions and that low carbon fuels must play a part. The regulations made last year introduced a greenhouse gas reduction obligation on suppliers and incentives for the development of fuels capable of delivering higher greenhouse gas emissions reductions. These allow us to reward low carbon fuels because of the emissions reductions they deliver. We have also made £20 million of match capital funding available under the future fuels for freight and flight competition. In the wider context, the Government have recently published two major strategies focused on combating climate change and improving the UK’s air quality. Our Road to Zero strategy sets out a clear pathway to zero emissions vehicles by 2050, and this week we have published our clean air strategy. The pathway is not just about driver behaviour and electrification. Low-carbon fuels will continue to play a vital role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the vehicle fleet.

The renewable transport fuel obligation, as amended last year, is expected to save nearly 85 million tonnes of CO₂ over the 15-year period from 2018, which represents around a third of transport’s projected contribution to UK carbon budget savings during the 2020s. In achieving those savings there is an opportunity to increase the amount of bioethanol in petrol, from 5% today up to 10%.

[Alex Cunningham]

The Under-Secretary is doing a grand job stonewalling on behalf of the Minister of State. If there is one message that we would ask to be taken back, it is that we desperately need a date and we need that certainty. Will she commit to go to the Minister and say, “Look, these guys are going to bash your door down if you do not actually make a decision and make it soon”?

[Ms Ghani]

I believe that the door has already been bashed down, because a meeting is set in the diary.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Nusrat Ghani and Alex Cunningham

Thursday 10th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

3. What steps his Department is taking to support community transport operators.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Ms Nusrat Ghani)]

The services run by community transport operators are of vital importance to our transport sector and communities. During the most recent financial year, the Government supported community transport operators with almost £3.1 million through the bus service operators grant. A number of projects from the £11.5 million building connections fund will also provide new community transport links to support those most at risk of isolation.

[Alex Cunningham]

That is a tiny amount to invest in community transport. My constituency is largely rural, and people in our villages—particularly older people—are left isolated because profit-making bus companies are not interested in serving them. There is some community provision, but very little funding. Will the Minister offer my isolated communities some comfort and commit more money to that sector, either directly or through the combined authority?