The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with President Xi at the September 2016 G20 meeting on separating the building of the Hualong One reactor at Bradwell from the agreement on Hinkley Point C.
Jesse Norman
My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy did not attend the September 2016 G20 meeting.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2015-12-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to paragraph 2.150 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, how many of the additional homes to be protected from flooding are classified as at (a) very high, (b) high, (c) moderate, (d) low and (e) very low risk of flooding; and what estimate she has made of the number of such homes that will be in each such category after the completion of work to protect them from flooding.
Rory Stewart
The £2.3 billion 6-year capital investment programme will better protect over 300,000 homes and will move around 170,000 households from either ‘very significant’ or ‘significant’ flood probability category to the ‘moderate’ or ‘low’ probability category.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-03-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department has produced a cross-departmental strategy for the UK to implement the Sustainable Development Goals.
Mr Desmond Swayne
The UK Government as a whole is committed to implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and the Government’s manifesto sets out the plan of action for which it will be held accountable by the British people. This includes commitments relevant to each of the Goals, and it will guide our efforts to achieve them. The Global Goals are the starting point for, and will be embedded across, DFID’s work.
DFID is the lead Department on the Goals, and will be working with the Cabinet Office across Government to ensure a joined-up approach to implementation. Other Government Departments will lead on their respective policy areas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-04-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether her Department has prepared contingency plans relating to interconnection with the continental electricity grid in the event of the UK voting to leave the EU.
Amber Rudd
At the February European Council, the Government negotiated a new settlement, giving the United Kingdom a special status in a reformed European Union. The Government’s position, as set out by my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister to the House on 22 February, is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.
We currently expect our electricity interconnector capacity with Europe to double by the early 2020s with studies showing they could deliver benefits to British consumers of almost £12 billion over 25 years. As the White Paper that the Government published in February on the process for withdrawing from the European Union makes clear, a vote to leave the EU would lead to a prolonged period of uncertainty, including on the nature of our access to the EU’s single energy market.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how the reforms to the Capacity Market announced on 6 May 2016 will provide investment incentives for new gas plants to be built in the UK.
Andrea Leadsom
The purpose of the Capacity Market is to ensure security of electricity supply by providing all forms of capacity the right incentives to be on the system to be prepared to deliver energy when needed. On 6 May we announced that we would buy more capacity and buy it earlier, enhancing the opportunities for new plant such as gas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-06-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to implement the recommendations in the first report of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, published in April 2016.
Anna Soubry
The Extractives Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI) requires implementing countries to form a Multi-Stakeholder Group (MSG) consisting of industry, civil society and government, who work in partnership to implement EITI. The MSG meets every 2 months with the next meeting on 12 July.
The UK MSG is currently reviewing the first year’s report and these recommendations form part of that review.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-09-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many officials of the Department for Energy and Climate Change have not transferred to work at his Department; and what the cost has been to date of redundancy payments to such staff resulting from the changes to the machinery of government.
Joseph Johnson
Following the appointment of my rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 14 July 2016 all employees of the Department of Energy and Climate Change became part of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on that date.
There have been no redundancies made since the 14 July as a result of the machinery of government change.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2015-12-17.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he will take to ensure that the UK contribution to the $100 billion of climate finance referred to in the UNFCCC Paris Agreement conforms with Article 9, Paragraph 3 of the Agreement and is additional to the 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product that constitutes the Department for International Development budget.
Greg Hands
On 27 September 2015, the Prime Minister announced that the UK will provide at least £5.8bn of climate finance in the period 2016-17 to 2020-21, a 50% increase from the £3.87bn provided in the period 2011-12 to 2015-16. In line with Article 9, Paragraph 3 of the Paris Agreement, this therefore represents “a progression beyond previous efforts”. The UK will also take into account “the needs and priorities of developing countries” in the delivery of climate finance.
The UK’s climate finance is within our commitment to provide 0.7% of Gross National Income as Official Development Assistance, recognising the strong inter-linkages between sustainable development and action to address and adapt to the effects of climate change.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-03-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what representations she made on raising the EU’s 2030 greenhouse gas target at the Environment Council on 4 March 2016.
Andrea Leadsom
My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State represented the UK for the climate change discussion at the Environment Council on 4th March and spoke in support of the Presidency’s assessment of the Paris Agreement. In his intervention, my noble Friend noted that the Paris Agreement is a historic step forward but that the current level of commitments does not put us on a pathway to meet the well below 2°C global goal. He said it was vital we push for another moment in 2020 to raise collective mitigation ambition and that the EU continue its climate leadership role and maintain the momentum created in Paris. He therefore called for the EU and its Member States to be prepared for the first ambition cycle in 2018-2020.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-04-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when she plans to open her Department’s consultation on the timetable for closing all coal-fired power stations in the UK.
Andrea Leadsom
My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced in her speech on 18 November that the Department will be launching a consultation to close all coal fired power stations. A consultation will be launched shortly.