Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many gigawatt hours of electricity has been imported by individual interconnectors since 2019; and what proportion of total electricity output was generated by interconnectors in (i) 2020, (ii) 2021, (ii) 2022 and (iv) 2023.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
UK electricity imports from 2019 to 2023 via each interconnector are presented in the following table, in gigawatt hours (GWh):
Country | Interconnector | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
France | IFA 1 | 11,875 | 10,412 | 10,138 | 1,116 | 7,028 |
| IFA 2 | x | x | 5,014 | 1,246 | 3,825 |
| ElectraLink | x | x | x | 374 | 4,649 |
Netherlands | BritNed | 6,049 | 4,674 | 4,341 | 3,610 | 4,265 |
Ireland | East West | 1,238 | 1,600 | 538 | 990 | 239 |
| NI to Ireland | 302 | 321 | 325 | 336 | 213 |
Belgium | Nemo | 5,091 | 5,384 | 6,995 | 3,230 | 3,986 |
Norway | North Sea Link | x | x | 1,393 | 4,547 | 8,945 |
Denmark | Viking | x | x | x | x | 64 |
Total |
| 24,556 | 22,391 | 28,743 | 15,451 | 33,212 |
The share of the UK’s gross electricity supply (generation plus imports, excluding exports) supplied via interconnectors each year was: (i) 2020 6.6%, (ii) 2021 8.5%, (iii) 2022 4.6%, (iv) 2023 10.4%. 2023 data is provisional. Final figures will be published in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics at the end of July 2024.
In February 2024, the UK imported 3,696 GWh of electricity.
In 2023, 9,499 GWh of electricity was exported from the UK via interconnectors. This compares to 20,793 GWh in 2022 when the UK was a net exporter of electricity for the first time in 40 years.
Source: National Grid and EirGrid data.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many gigawatt hours of electricity was imported in February.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
UK electricity imports from 2019 to 2023 via each interconnector are presented in the following table, in gigawatt hours (GWh):
Country | Interconnector | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
France | IFA 1 | 11,875 | 10,412 | 10,138 | 1,116 | 7,028 |
| IFA 2 | x | x | 5,014 | 1,246 | 3,825 |
| ElectraLink | x | x | x | 374 | 4,649 |
Netherlands | BritNed | 6,049 | 4,674 | 4,341 | 3,610 | 4,265 |
Ireland | East West | 1,238 | 1,600 | 538 | 990 | 239 |
| NI to Ireland | 302 | 321 | 325 | 336 | 213 |
Belgium | Nemo | 5,091 | 5,384 | 6,995 | 3,230 | 3,986 |
Norway | North Sea Link | x | x | 1,393 | 4,547 | 8,945 |
Denmark | Viking | x | x | x | x | 64 |
Total |
| 24,556 | 22,391 | 28,743 | 15,451 | 33,212 |
The share of the UK’s gross electricity supply (generation plus imports, excluding exports) supplied via interconnectors each year was: (i) 2020 6.6%, (ii) 2021 8.5%, (iii) 2022 4.6%, (iv) 2023 10.4%. 2023 data is provisional. Final figures will be published in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics at the end of July 2024.
In February 2024, the UK imported 3,696 GWh of electricity.
In 2023, 9,499 GWh of electricity was exported from the UK via interconnectors. This compares to 20,793 GWh in 2022 when the UK was a net exporter of electricity for the first time in 40 years.
Source: National Grid and EirGrid data.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, how many requests for consular support were made to each British Embassy or Consulate in 2023; and how many of those were responded to by officials within a period of 24 hours.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our consular staff endeavour to give appropriate and tailored assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year, to British nationals overseas and their families in the UK who need support. In 2023, in addition to long running cases, we provided support to around 22,000 British nationals, see breakdown by Post in the table below. The FCDO reports publicly on consular delivery through the FCDO Outcome Delivery Plan [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/foreign-commonwealth-development-office-outcome-delivery-plan]. Publishing our transparency data is currently on hold while we embed a new Case Management system.
COUNTRY | 2023 |
Afghanistan | 22 |
Albania | 63 |
Algeria | 23 |
Angola | |
Argentina | 34 |
Armenia | 8 |
Australia | 414 |
Austria | 92 |
Azerbaijan | 12 |
Bahrain | 48 |
Barbados | 113 |
Belarus | 6 |
Belgium | 152 |
Bolivia | 12 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 12 |
Botswana | 15 |
Brazil | 88 |
Bulgaria | 166 |
Cambodia | 112 |
Cameroon | 30 |
Canada | 181 |
Chile | 21 |
China | 143 |
Colombia | 73 |
Congo (Democratic Republic) | 22 |
Costa Rica | 39 |
Croatia | 114 |
Cuba | 29 |
Cyprus | 441 |
Czechia | 141 |
Denmark | 88 |
Dominican Republic | 67 |
Ecuador | 13 |
Egypt | 383 |
Estonia | 19 |
Ethiopia | 104 |
Fiji | 21 |
Finland | 49 |
France | 1027 |
Georgia | 27 |
Germany | 662 |
Ghana | 85 |
Greece | 936 |
Guatemala | 43 |
Guinea | |
Guyana | 17 |
Hong Kong SAR | 110 |
Hungary | 131 |
Iceland | 17 |
India | 360 |
Indonesia | 196 |
Iraq | 46 |
Ireland | 104 |
Israel | 39 |
Italy | 411 |
Ivory Coast | |
Jamaica | 179 |
Japan | 167 |
Jerusalem | 61 |
Jordan | 71 |
Kazakhstan | 14 |
Kenya | 146 |
Kuwait | 30 |
Kyrgyzstan | |
Laos | 29 |
Latvia | 20 |
Lebanon | 34 |
Liberia | |
Lithuania | 23 |
Luxembourg | 10 |
Madagascar | |
Malawi | |
Malaysia | 138 |
Malta | 106 |
Mauritius | 14 |
Mexico | 207 |
Moldova | 13 |
Mongolia | 6 |
Montenegro | 33 |
Morocco | 222 |
Myanmar (Burma) | 8 |
Namibia | 9 |
Nepal | 21 |
Netherlands | 287 |
New Zealand | 127 |
Nigeria | 74 |
Norway | 149 |
Oman | 50 |
Pakistan | 376 |
Panama | 17 |
Paraguay | |
Peru | 58 |
Philippines | 283 |
Poland | 242 |
Portugal | 524 |
Qatar | 96 |
Romania | 89 |
Russia | 28 |
Rwanda | 7 |
Saudi Arabia | 166 |
Senegal | 21 |
Serbia | 29 |
Seychelles | 11 |
Sierra Leone | 15 |
Singapore | 105 |
Slovakia | 38 |
Slovenia | 17 |
South Africa | 195 |
South Korea | 40 |
Spain | 4143 |
Sri Lanka | 86 |
St Lucia | 21 |
Sudan | 34 |
Sweden | 110 |
Switzerland | 157 |
Taiwan | 22 |
Tajikistan | 6 |
Tanzania | 36 |
Thailand | 1383 |
The Gambia | 48 |
Trinidad and Tobago | 40 |
Tunisia | 75 |
Turkey | 947 |
Uganda | 52 |
Ukraine | 56 |
United Arab Emirates | 658 |
United States | 1649 |
Uruguay | 10 |
Uzbekistan | 8 |
Venezuela | |
Vietnam | 188 |
Zambia | 22 |
Zimbabwe | 26 |
NB We do not publish data where figures are 5 or below to comply with GDPR
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many gigawatt hours of electricity was exported via interconnectors in the last 12 months.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
UK electricity imports from 2019 to 2023 via each interconnector are presented in the following table, in gigawatt hours (GWh):
Country | Interconnector | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
France | IFA 1 | 11,875 | 10,412 | 10,138 | 1,116 | 7,028 |
| IFA 2 | x | x | 5,014 | 1,246 | 3,825 |
| ElectraLink | x | x | x | 374 | 4,649 |
Netherlands | BritNed | 6,049 | 4,674 | 4,341 | 3,610 | 4,265 |
Ireland | East West | 1,238 | 1,600 | 538 | 990 | 239 |
| NI to Ireland | 302 | 321 | 325 | 336 | 213 |
Belgium | Nemo | 5,091 | 5,384 | 6,995 | 3,230 | 3,986 |
Norway | North Sea Link | x | x | 1,393 | 4,547 | 8,945 |
Denmark | Viking | x | x | x | x | 64 |
Total |
| 24,556 | 22,391 | 28,743 | 15,451 | 33,212 |
The share of the UK’s gross electricity supply (generation plus imports, excluding exports) supplied via interconnectors each year was: (i) 2020 6.6%, (ii) 2021 8.5%, (iii) 2022 4.6%, (iv) 2023 10.4%. 2023 data is provisional. Final figures will be published in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics at the end of July 2024.
In February 2024, the UK imported 3,696 GWh of electricity.
In 2023, 9,499 GWh of electricity was exported from the UK via interconnectors. This compares to 20,793 GWh in 2022 when the UK was a net exporter of electricity for the first time in 40 years.
Source: National Grid and EirGrid data.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, which electricity interconnector projects (a) have received approval and (b) are awaiting approval; and what the megawatt capacity is of each proposed project.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Ofgem is responsible for awarding regulatory approval to electricity interconnector projects in Great Britain. There are two main routes to regulatory approval, through the awarding of a cap and floor regime, or a merchant route. Including both routes, Ofgem has given approval to the following projects:
Ofgem is assessing a selection of projects that applied for regulatory approval through the third cap and floor application window. These results are interim and are being consulted upon. The final decision will be made in summer 2024 by Ofgem. The projects that are awaiting final regulatory decisions are:
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many electricity interconnectors are operational; and what the megawatt capacity is per interconnector.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Great Britain currently has nine operational interconnectors, listed alongside their deployed capacity:
Asked by: Lord Cruddas (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Barran on 19 February (HL2185), whether they plan to undertake a detailed review of the teaching of financial literacy in Denmark, Norway and Sweden with a view to updating the mathematics national curriculum.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department has no plans to undertake a detailed review of the teaching of financial literacy in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. The department continues to work closely with HM Treasury and the Money and Pensions Service to monitor the evidence base for financial education to understand what works and what further support schools may need.
In order to provide stability for schools and to enable them to remain focused on raising standards of literacy and numeracy and recovery from the pandemic, the government has committed to making no changes to the national curriculum for the remainder of the Parliament.
The current mathematics curriculum in England already provides young people with the mathematical knowledge that underpins their ability to make important financial decisions. Mathematics is compulsory in maintained schools and academies must teach a broad and balanced curriculum, including mathematics. Since 2014, the department has reformed the mathematics curriculum and examinations system, bringing teaching practice from high-performing jurisdictions from across East Asia to primary and secondary schools in England.
International comparison studies of school-aged pupils show that England performs above the international averages for mathematics for all age groups. Before the pandemic, England achieved its highest ever mathematics score in the 2019 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study international test for year five pupils.
Ofsted’s latest mathematical subject report in 2023 stated that primary mathematics education has seen "a resounding, positive shift" with curriculum sitting "at the heart of leaders' decisions and actions", whilst secondary mathematics education has seen "notable improvements" in curriculum guidance and professional development.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the value of contributions by each country is to the International Fund for Ukraine.
Answered by James Heappey
To date seven countries have contributed £896 million to the International Fund for Ukraine. These contributions are set out in the following table:
Country | Contribution in £million |
Denmark | 133 |
Iceland | 3 |
Lithuania | 5 |
Netherlands | 110 |
Norway | 119 |
Sweden | 26 |
UK | 500 |
Australia and New Zealand have recently announced their intention to contribute 50 million Australian dollars and 6.5 million New Zealand dollars to the International Fund for Ukraine.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions, if any, they have held with EU countries regarding the introduction of safety and security declaration requirements for EU imports on 31 October, and what were the contents of any such discussions.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Government officials engage regularly with officials from EU Member States to discuss new customs-related requirements, including safety and security declarations. This has included official visits to Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Denmark and Ireland with further engagement planned for Italy, Spain, Poland and Germany in 2024. Baroness Neville-Rolfe visited Belgium to discuss import controls with the Belgian Government and industry in early February 2024. Partners have been extremely helpful in communicating these requirements using their own stakeholder communication channels, and providing suggestions for further guidance that could be helpful. More formal communication of these changes to EU Member States took place in the Trade Specialised Committee on Customs Cooperation and Rules of Origin, the minutes of which can be found on gov.uk.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he is seeking to secure additional bilateral voting rights agreements with EU states to ensure EU citizens who arrived in the UK from 2021 onwards can continue voting in local elections after May 2024.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
In December 2018, the UK wrote to all 27 EU Member States signalling our willingness to enter into bilateral agreements to ensure continuity of local election voting and candidacy rights for each other's citizens. Since 2018, we have entered into five bilateral agreements, these are: Spain, Portugal, Luxembourg, Poland and very recently Denmark, which is subject to Parliamentary ratification. The existence of constitutional barriers in some Member States has prevented the UK from entering into agreements with certain Member States. However, the UK remains open to negotiating fully reciprocal bilateral agreements where EU Member States are interested in doing so.