Contributions
250 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD Offshore Wind Substations: East of EnglandSome might say that it is drawing the short straw to do a late Adjournment on such an important evening, but this debate on an incredibly important topic is far from it. It is…11 Mar 2019HANSARDOffshore Wind Sector DealAs part of the industrial strategy, the Government are committed to continue to work closely with the offshore wind industry to further drive down the costs of clean power, while…07 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryIt is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Hollobone. I know that you take a strong interest in these matters on behalf of your constituents in Kettering. I warmly…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryI thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention. I am pleased to tell him that one of the pieces of legislation we have introduced ensures that the least efficient homes in the…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryI am sure that the hon. Lady will have read the clean growth strategy from cover to cover, and will have seen in there that we have set out ambitious targets for the central…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustrySadly, in all honesty, probably not. We have been clearly signalling the closing of the FIT scheme for several years now, and the response from the industry has been, “We…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryI will just keep going, then! If anyone else would like to intervene, the Floor is theirs.05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryWell, Mr Hollobone, you learn something every day in Parliament. It would perhaps be only courteous to allow my hon. Friend to sum up; is that permissible?05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryThat is a valuable point, and the hon. Lady is right to make it. The consultation is closing in a few hours’ time. I know that it has been welcomed, including by the industry,…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryIndeed I do, and I am proud to have secured one of the largest increases in innovation research and development spending in the clean energy space. Of course, the ECO scheme,…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryI will come to the hon. Lady’s point in a second. I talked about jobs and the opportunity for skilled workers to pursue careers in this sector. Not only is there ongoing growth in…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryThat is an important question that will come out in the consultation. Frankly, I would ensure that the market rate was always greater than zero, but that it varied at different…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryI am coming to that point. We have not said that the feed-in tariff is no more, and that there is essentially no value out there; there is huge value in having decentralised…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryThe hon. Gentleman will be aware that we have some of the tightest energy efficiency standards for new homes, but I totally agree that we need to go further, and my right hon. and…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryI will touch on that good point about community. Many good schemes operate across various local authorities. The feed-in tariff scheme has been an effective part of our great…05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryI am going to take an intervention from the hon. Member for Ceredigion (Ben Lake), who has not spoken yet.05 Mar 2019HANSARD Solar IndustryI want to respond to the points made by my hon. Friend the Member for Eddisbury, but of course I will accept the intervention.05 Mar 2019HANSARD Net Zero Carbon Emissions: UK’s ProgressThe hon. Lady makes an important point. Of course the role of Government is to set ambition and to lead. I wish to pay tribute to my right hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip,…28 Feb 2019HANSARD Net Zero Carbon Emissions: UK’s ProgressIn that case, having given way very generously, I will say this: I entirely accept the challenge of working further and faster. We must keep leading from the front so that we can…28 Feb 2019HANSARD Net Zero Carbon Emissions: UK’s ProgressI entirely agree. Many groups out there will be waiting to see what we say today, including those young people who took to the streets with great energy and verve. It was an…28 Feb 2019