The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-02-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what capacity of existing Capacity Market Units were awarded Capacity Market contracts in (a) 2014 and (b) 2015.
Andrea Leadsom
The capacity of existing Capacity Market Units awarded Capacity Market agreements including those awarded refurbishing agreements was:
a) 46,464MW in 2014; and
b) 42,099 MW in 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-04-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate she has made of the number of households which will refuse a smart meter.
Andrea Leadsom
The Government has not made a specific estimate of the number of consumers that will refuse a smart meter. We will monitor this as the roll-out progresses.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-09-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of further delays to the DCC go-live date on the effectiveness of smart meter rollout.
Jesse Norman
The Data and Communications Company is in the final stages of testing the national new data and communications infrastructure for smart metering. It is important to get this right to ensure a good consumer experience from the outset.
In parallel, the roll out continues to make good progress. Consumers are able to receive smart meters ahead of the national infrastructure going live and more than 3.6 million smart meters are already operating in homes and businesses across the country.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether the amount in the Levy Control Framework increased when the Carbon Price Floor was frozen in the 2014 Budget.
Andrea Leadsom
The Levy Control Framework cap was not adjusted in response to the freezing the Carbon Price Floor in 2014 Budget. The Carbon Price Floor is a policy led by HM Treasury. In the 2014 Budget, the Carbon Price Support, the mechanism by which the carbon price floor is delivered, was capped at £18/tCO2 until 2019/20. DECC analysis on projected levy expenditure under the Levy Control Framework to 2020/21 reflects these rates.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-02-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications to the Disclosure and Barring Service from people living in Greenwich and Woolwich constituency have taken more than 60 days to process in the last 12 months.
Karen Bradley
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) provides a formal monthly performance report to the Home Office and Home Office Ministers. This includes updates on the performance of police forces in meeting the Service Level Agreement (SLA) standards for the time taken to complete local disclosure checks.
The DBS monitors the performance of all police disclosure units and works closely with any force, including the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) which is having difficulty in meeting its targets. An MPS Gold Group is overseeing the recovery plan in place at the MPS. London Boroughs do not operate their own disclosure units.
The number of applications to the Disclosure and Barring Service from people living in Greenwich and Woolwich constituency that have taken more than 60 days to process in each of the last 12 months is listed in the table below.
|
Month |
Total Disclosures Issued to Applicants from the Constituency of Greenwich and Woolwich |
Disclosures that took longer than 60 days |
|
February 2015 – January 2016 |
11,446 |
1,688 |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-02-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what proportion of existing capacity of existing Capacity Market Units that were awarded Capacity Market contracts did not place an exit bid in (a) 2014 and (b) 2015.
Andrea Leadsom
All existing Capacity Market Units (CMU) participating in the 2014 and 2015 auctions submitted exit bids in accordance with the auction rules. Confidentiality rules mean that the Government is unable to obtain from National Grid, the delivery body for the Capacity Market, the detailed information on individual exit bids.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-04-21.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the report by the Office for National Statistics, the Feasibility of measuring the sharing economy, published in April 2016.
Harriett Baldwin
HM Treasury has taken note of this feasibility study. Professor Sir Charles Bean’s Independent Review of Economic Statistics highlighted the importance of proper measurement of the sharing economy and to enable the Office for National Statistics to develop world-leading analytical and digital capabilities in economic measurement, the government will invest over £10m in a new hub for data science and a centre for excellence in economic measurement in line with recommendations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-09-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to review the decision to remove solar thermal from the Renewable Heat Incentive.
Jesse Norman
In March the Department for Energy and Climate Change published a consultation “The Renewable Heat Incentive: A reformed and refocused scheme”, including proposals relating to solar thermal.
The Government is currently considering responses to the consultation and will announce its final proposals in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the potential effect on costs to consumers of the contract for difference awarded to Hinkley Point C.
Andrea Leadsom
As stated in my answer to PQ 15115, under the CfD consumers won’t pay anything for electricity until the plant is powering their homes and businesses. Payments under the CfD are expected to make up around £10 (real 2012 prices) of the average household energy bill in 2030. This should be seen in the context of Hinkley Point C meeting 7% of the UK’s energy needs, and set against our estimate that a new nuclear programme could reduce average household bills by up to around £30 in 2030 (again in real 2012 prices). This is calculated by comparing the costs for consumers in a modelled scenario for the future electricity mix with Hinkley Point C and a further role out of the new nuclear programme with the cost for consumers in a scenario where there are no new nuclear power stations by 2030. Savings could be higher or lower depending on changes in the cost of alternative generation technologies and what mix of technologies would ultimately be used.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent assessment he has made of the extent of anti-competitive practices in the newspaper wholesale market.
Nick Boles
Responsibility for considering competition issues in the UK falls to the independent competition authorities. Since 2014 this role has been carried out by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT), the predecessor of the CMA, conducted a detailed investigation of the operation of the distribution arrangements for the supply of newspapers and magazines in England and Wales over a number of years. In September 2009, the OFT decided that, although there might be competition concerns, developments benefiting consumers could come about from industry parties self-assessing their distribution agreements following competition guidance provided by the OFT.
The OFT considered that it would not be feasible for the Competition Commission to obtain the necessary evidence at that time properly to assess how the supply chains were likely to evolve in the short term. This decision was reviewed and confirmed in March 2012 and was upheld by the Competition Appeal Tribunal in October 2012.