Blog

  • Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate she has made of the proportion of existing fossil fuel reserves that are (a) unburnable under a scenario of keeping temperature increases to below two degrees C and (b) unburnable; and what her policy is on the proportion of primary energy supply (i) in the UK, (ii) globally that should come from oil and gas in (A) 2030 and (B) 2050; and if she will make a statement.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The International Energy Agency has suggested that around a third of global fossil fuel reserves are burnable under a 2°C scenario.

    In the UK, we are committed to implementing the Wood Review recommendations to maximise economic recovery of oil and gas in a way that is compatible with our climate change targets. Maximising recovery both in terms of increasing efficiency of production, as well as increasing levels of production of the UK’s oil and gas, will help maintain security of supply as well as boost growth and jobs.

    This Government remains committed to the Climate Change Act and to meeting our climate change target of an 80% emissions reduction by 2050. This will mean reducing the amount of fossil fuels we use – through improved energy efficiency and increased supplies of low carbon energy – as well as reducing other sources of emissions. As part of our efforts to reduce emissions I have already announced that the Government will consult on proposals to end coal power generation by 2025 and restrict its use from 2023.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will make an assessment of the effect of replacing the UK’s existing coal fired power stations through a combination of energy conservation, demand side measures and renewable power instead of new gas fired power stations on (a) job creation, (b) carbon emissions, (c) household energy bills, (d) long-term energy security and (e) the UK’s global influence on securing international action on climate change; and if she will make a statement.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Department will be launching a consultation in the spring on the closure of unabated coal fired power stations. This will include an impact assessment, and I encourage the honourable lady to examine these documents when published next year

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many civil servants in her Department are in the redeployment pool.

    Andrea Leadsom

    On 30 November 2015 there were 18 civil servants in the redeployment pool within the Department of Energy and Climate Change.

  • Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what discussions she has had with the Northern Ireland Executive on the Paris climate change conference.

    Andrea Leadsom

    My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change has been engaging with her counterpart in Northern Ireland to discuss the UK’s objectives for COP21; and is intending to meet with the Minister of Environment for Northern Ireland in Paris.

  • Danny Kinahan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Danny Kinahan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what change there has been in the number of jobs in the solar industry in Northern Ireland since January 2015.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Size and Performance of the Low-carbon Economy (2015) report by the Department of Business, Innovation, and Skills estimated the number of low-carbon jobs in Northern Ireland in 2013.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/416240/bis-15-206-size-and-performance-of-uk-low-carbon-economy.pdf

    “

  • Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change scenarios for keeping global temperatures below two degrees require (a) negative emissions technologies and (b) peaking of global emissions before (i) 2015 and (ii) 2020; and if she will make a statement.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Of the 204 emissions scenarios included in the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report database with climate model projections which are consistent with a more than 50% chance of keeping global warming below 2 °C by 2100:

    (a)177 of these include negative emissions technologies; and

    (b)noting that the scenarios do not consider emissions in 2015, but rather for each decade:

    (i) 111 of the scenarios require emissions to peak by 2010; and

    (ii) 46 additional scenarios require emissions to peak by 2020.

    The remainder either do not report total emissions (11) or peak after 2020. The general features of the scenarios in this database show that delaying strong action to reduce emissions would increase the risk of exceeding 2 °C of warming and associated impacts, and require deeper emissions cuts in the future and/or a heavier reliance on negative emissions technologies at scale. This is why the Department is seeking ambitious global action on climate change in Paris.

  • Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children in each county and unitary council area in the North West are currently receiving free school meals under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The number of children eligible and receiving free school meals (FSM) is available at regional and local authority level online at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2015.

    We do not hold information on the qualifying benefits of individual claimants.

    “

  • David Lammy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    David Lammy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Lammy on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what policies his Department is implementing to promote active fatherhood; and if he will make it his policy that fathers be required to sign birth certificates.

    Priti Patel

    Our objective is to support families to create and maintain good quality relationships to sustain a safe, stable and nurturing environment for their children. We believe that fathers play an integral role in family life and that is why the government has worked hard to ensure that families have the support they need. In particular, we have invested approximately £8m for 2015-16 providing services for couples – mothers and fathers – during key transitions and in difficulty. We have ensured that all specifications for new contracts specifically include a requirement for providers to engage fathers and ensure their services are father friendly.

    We have also introduced the Family Test which ensures that potential impacts on family functioning are carefully considered as part of the policymaking process, including impacts on all members’ ability to play a full role in family life.

    The legislative provisions to introduce mandatory joint registration remain on the statute and we will continue to consider how joint registration can support fathers’ involvement as part of a wider package of support.

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many civil servants in her Department are in the redeployment pool.

    Nick Gibb

    There are nine civil servants in the redeployment pool.

  • Heidi Allen – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Heidi Allen – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Allen on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of children who are refused admission to a state funded faith school on the grounds of differing faith or belief; and if she will work with schools and faith groups to facilitate inclusive admission policies in all state funded schools.

    Edward Timpson

    The department does not collect data on the reasons why individual applicants are refused a place to particular schools.

    It is for the relevant admission authority of a school designated with a religious character to decide whether or not to adopt faith-based oversubscription criteria. Not all schools with a faith designation choose to allocate places by faith. Some choose to allocate only a proportion of their places on the basis of faith. Where they have places available, schools with a faith designation must admit all children who apply, without reference to faith.

    The government is committed to ensuring that new faith-designated academies and free schools provide additional places not just for pupils of their own faith, but also for other local children regardless of their faith. New provision academies and free schools with a faith designation must give priority to at least 50 per cent of their intake without reference to faith, where they are oversubscribed.