Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether her Department has considered the potential contribution that sustainable fuels can make to supporting the decarbonisation of the UK economy.

Sustainable fuels already form an important part of our energy mix and are contributing to the decarbonisation of the UK economy.

During 2014 just under a fifth of renewable electricity generation came from bioenergy; bioenergy also forms about 94% of our total renewable heat generation; and in transport the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) ensures that just under 5% of transport fuel comes from sustainable biofuels.

The 2011 Carbon Plan set out a range of scenarios for how the UK could reduce emissions. This considered the role of renewable technologies under the different scenarios. The Government is due to set out next year the level of the fifth carbon budget, covering the years 2028-2032, and following this, a new emissions reduction plan will be published.