Author: admin

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the contribution of 6 November 2014 by the Minister of State in his Department, Official Report, column 949, what assistance the Department has made available to UK Coal for the preparation of an application for state aid.

Matthew Hancock

I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).

Senior Officials from the BIS Yorkshire Humber North East Office were assigned to assist UK Coal following their interest in applying for additional government funding to extend the operation of their two deep mines. These officials provided feedback, advice and suggestions to help UK Coal prepare a case for Government support and met with them on several occasions throughout this process. On 16 January 2015, UK Coal submitted its request and supporting case for additional public sector support.

The Government is carefully considering the merits of this request including whether it represents acceptable value for money and is a good use of taxpayer’s money. Should the Government decide to make the case to the European Commission that we should pay state aid to UK Coal we will assign a team across BIS and DECC to take this forward.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the contribution of 6 November 2014 by the Minister of State in his Department, Official Report, column 949, what his Department’s policy is on the provision of state aid to UK Coal in respect of Thoresby and Kellingley coal mines.

Matthew Hancock

UK Coal submitted a request for additional public sector support to extend the working life of the Thoresby and Kellingley coal mines on 16 January 2015. The Government is carefully considering this request including whether it represents acceptable value for money and is a good use of taxpayer’s money.

If the Government concludes there is merit in supporting the new plan, it would need to ensure the plan is consistent with state aid rules applying to the coal sector and seek approval from the European Commission to pay aid to UK Coal.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the contribution of 6 November 2014 by the Minister of State in his Department, Official Report, column 949, what resources the Government is making available to UK Coal in support of the provision of state aid to UK Coal in respect of Thoresby and Kellingley coal mines.

Matthew Hancock

I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).

Senior Officials from the BIS Yorkshire Humber North East Office were assigned to assist UK Coal following their interest in applying for additional government funding to extend the operation of their two deep mines. These officials provided feedback, advice and suggestions to help UK Coal prepare a case for Government support and met with them on several occasions throughout this process. On 16 January 2015, UK Coal submitted its request and supporting case for additional public sector support.

The Government is carefully considering the merits of this request including whether it represents acceptable value for money and is a good use of taxpayer’s money. Should the Government decide to make the case to the European Commission that we should pay state aid to UK Coal we will assign a team across BIS and DECC to take this forward.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to page 45 of his Department’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2012-13, what proportion of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s budget was spent on decommissioning and cleaning up nuclear plants in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14.

Matthew Hancock

As defined for the purposes of the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s Annual Report and Accounts, the proportion of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s expenditure through its Site Licence Companies that was used for decommissioning was 35% in both 2012-13 and 2013-14. The remainder of this budget was spent on waste and nuclear materials management, commercial operations and support costs.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what proportion of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s budget he expects to be spent on decommissioning and cleaning up nuclear plants in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16.

Matthew Hancock

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority expects the proportion of its expenditure through its Site Licence Companies that is used for decommissioning, as defined for the purposes of the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s Annual Report and Accounts, to be 37% in 2014-15 and 41% in 2015-16. The remainder of this budget will be spent on waste and nuclear materials management, commercial operations and support costs.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s Site Licence Companies spent on support and overhead costs in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14.

Matthew Hancock

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s expenditure on support costs, as defined for the purposes of the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s Annual Report and Accounts, was £739m in 2010-11, £800m in 2011-12, £801m in 2012-13 and £814m in 2013-14. The definition includes research and technology, IT, security, facilities, programme management, procurement, human resources, finance, head-office costs, EHS&Q (environment, health safety and quality), regulatory engagement and communications.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s Site Licence Companies plan to spend on support and overhead costs in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16.

Matthew Hancock

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority expects to spend £970m in 2014-15 and £918m in 2015-16 on support costs, as defined for the purposes of the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s Annual Report and Accounts. The definition includes research and technology, IT, security, facilities, programme management, procurement, human resources, finance, head-office costs, EHS&Q (environment, health safety and quality), regulatory engagement and communications.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Flint on 2015-01-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s Site Licence Companies were awarded in efficiency fees and support and overhead cost reduction fees in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13 and (d) 2013-14.

Matthew Hancock

The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority paid its Site Licence Companies total efficiency fees, including support and overhead cost reduction fees where applicable, of £29.6m in 2010-11, £32.2m in 2011-12, £18.4m in 2012-13 and £16.0m in 2013-14.