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  • Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Elliott on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate he has made of the amount of private-sector investment committed to large-scale solar PV farm projects in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect of an early reduction in Renewables Obligation support on those levels of investment.

    Gregory Barker

    We do not hold data on the amount of private investment committed to large scale solar PV projects.

  • Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Elliott on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of contracts for difference auctioning on small and medium-sized enterprises in the (a) renewable energy sector and (b) solar power industry.

    Michael Fallon

    The Department launched a consultation on our approach to competitive allocation of Contracts for Difference (CfDs) in January 2014. This included proposals to move to auctioning of CfDs from the first allocation this autumn. We carefully considered the responses to the consultation from small and medium-sized enterprises in the renewable energy sector and the solar power industry before confirming our policy position in the Government Response published on 13 May 2014. We will continue to engage with SMEs as we implement our proposals for competitive allocation to understand any difficulties they might face in participating in an auction for CfDs.

  • Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Elliott on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the proposed reduction in solar farm support under the Renewables Obligation on planned community-owned or shared ownership schemes.

    Gregory Barker

    The Government published the second part of our UK Solar PV Strategy Part 2 [1] on 4 April 2014. We made clear in that document that we are considering the implications of current trends of deployment in solar PV on the financial incentives available in Great Britain under the Renewables Obligation and small-scale Feed-in-Tariffs. We will issue a public consultation shortly proposing changes to financial support for solar PV.

    [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-solar-pv-strategy-part-1-roadmap-to-a-brighter-future

    “

  • Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Elliott on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people employed in the UK solar PV sector in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013 and (e) 2014.

    Gregory Barker

    DECC does not hold this data.

    In March the National Solar Centre estimated that the industry employs 13,723 people on a full time basis.

  • Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Julie Elliott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Elliott on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment he has made of the potential effects of EU state aid rules on the UK feed in tariff policy framework; and if he will make a statement.

    Gregory Barker

    The European Commission adopted new guidelines for Energy and Environmental Aid (EEAG) on 9 April. Existing schemes, such as the Feed-in Tariff scheme (FITs), are not required to be brought into line with these new guidelines for as long as the relevant scheme remains covered by its existing EU state aid approval. It would only need to be brought into line if we were to introduce a change to the scheme that would, in itself, require state aid notification, as this would be outside the existing approval. If, after consultation on any alterations to FITs, we were to propose such a change, we would consider the trade-offs and risks for the scheme as a whole before reaching a final policy decision.

  • David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Blunkett on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department has taken to ensure that the work carried out under the Girls’ Education Challenge Fund is fully inclusive of girls with disabilities.

    Lynne Featherstone

    The Girls Education Challenge programme has seven projects providing over £9 million to fund disability-focused girls education projects in Uganda, Kenya and Sierra Leone.

  • David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Blunkett on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many of the teachers it aims to train by 2015 will be trained in providing inclusive education to children with disabilities.

    Lynne Featherstone

    The UK Government has committed to help train 190,000 teachers by 2015, to help improve the quality of education for all children, including those with disabilities. By 2012/13, DFID had trained 99,000 teachers. A major challenge in poor countries is developing the data systems which can capture the needs of children with disabilities. We are therefore supporting UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) to regularly publish education indicators which disaggregate people with disabilities, and to develop new standards for school censuses and surveys related to marginalised populations.

  • David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    David Blunkett – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Blunkett on 2014-05-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will review the applicability of VAT to vouchers for spectacles and other prescriptions under the voucher scheme; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Gauke

    The NHS optical voucher scheme provides financial support by way of a voucher to eligible persons to help them buy goods such as spectacles. The vouchers are simply a means of financial support; the VAT consequences result from the goods and services that the voucher is used to buy. Therefore, VAT exemption will apply to the eye test, fitting services and any medical treatment of an eye condition and VAT will apply to the spectacles, irrespective of how payment is made.

  • Nia Griffith – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Nia Griffith – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nia Griffith on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many companies are registered to provide Green Deal assessments in Wales.

    Gregory Barker

    TheGreen Deal Oversight and Regulation Body (ORB) produces publically available information on the supply chain. The latest information is available by using the search tool at http://gdorb.decc.gov.uk/.

    These organisations operate in different geographical locations and provide a wide variety of offers to consumers. Table 1.16 of the Department’s quarterly Official Statistics release shows the self-reported operational coverage of assessor organisations by Local Authority that they are expecting to operate within:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/green-deal-energy-company-obligation-eco-and-insulation-levels-in-great-britain-quarterly-report-to-december-2013

    “

  • Toby Perkins – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Toby Perkins – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Toby Perkins on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will commission an inquiry into the extent of problems arising from the use of motorised vehicles on unmetalled roads.

    Dan Rogerson

    In the Deregulation Bill Committee debate on 25 March, we announced that we propose to form a working group along the lines of the current rights of way Stakeholder Working Group. We will invite stakeholders with the relevant experience and expertise to join a group with an independent chair and secretariat, ensuring that the group contains a balance across the full range of interests.

    Any proposals made by the group for changing the current framework for managing the recreational use of motor vehicles would be subject to a full public consultation.