Tag: Stephen Timms

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether it is her policy to increase the proportion of energy in the UK generated from renewable sources.

Andrea Leadsom

By 2020, the UK is legally committed to obtain 15% of its final energy consumption from renewable sources under the EU Renewable Energy Directive. We continue to make progress towards our target with provisional figures showing 7.0% of final energy consumption came from renewable sources in 2014. A strong start was made to 2015 with over a quarter of electricity generation coming from renewable sources in Q2 2015, up 8.6% from Q2 2014.

Electricity generation from renewable sources, in 2014, was at 19.1% compared to 14.9% in 2013; renewable heat sources accounted for 4.8% of total heat demand in 2014; and fuel suppliers are already required to meet a 4.75% renewable transport fuel obligation by ensuring that sustainable biofuel is supplied.

Since 2010, DECC estimates that over £42 billion of private capital has been secured in low-carbon electricity generation projects and Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), spread geographically across the UK. 2014 was a record year for investment in renewable energy generation with over £8 billion being invested.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to continue the Universal Jobmatch service after the contract expires in April 2016; and if he will make a statement.

Priti Patel

DWP intends to exercise its right under the current contract to extend the service for a further 12 months. Commercial discussions are currently underway with the supplier.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the progress of UK firms in reducing their contribution to climate change.

Andrea Leadsom

Since 2003, the UK has had the least energy intensive economy in the G7. In its recent progress report, the Committee on Climate Change set out provisional figures for 2014 [1] which indicate that industrial output grew while energy consumption and emissions fell. The Government response [2] to the CCC report provides further assessment of progress towards reducing emissions from all sectors, including business.

However, there is still significant untapped energy efficiency potential in the business sector, estimated at 45TWh in 2020, representing around 10% of current business energy use. On 28 September Government launched a consultation reviewing the business energy tax landscape that will seek to better exploit this potential, reducing energy costs and improving productivity, while minimising administrative burdens. For energy intensive industry, following publication of the 2050 Industrial Decarbonisation and Energy Efficiency Roadmaps in March, the Government is working with sectors to develop action plans to enable industry to contribute to our decarbonisation targets while remaining competitive in the international marketplace.

[1] https://www.theccc.org.uk/publication/reducing-emissions-and-preparing-for-climate-change-2015-progress-report-to-parliament/

[2] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/committee-on-climate-changes-2015-progress-report-government-response

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of lessons from the experience of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act in the US to inform his plans to replace the Work Programme when the current contracts come to an end.

Priti Patel

We continuously review our employment programmes and consider global good practice examples.

Many features of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act are consistent with the current Work Programme framework and with Universal Credit which ensures work always pays and enables earnings tracking.

We are considering how proposed improvements in the structure of US services could benefit UK employment support in the design of our future offers, for example our cross government look into supporting collaborations between services at a local level.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to make an assessment of the case for an Eastern Branch of Crossrail 2 serving Hackney Central, Hackney Wick, Stratford, East Ham and Barking.

Claire Perry

No Government decision has yet been taken on Crossrail 2 and the alignment is principally a matter for the Mayor of London.

The recently established National Infrastructure Commission have been tasked with work to establish the best approach to large-scale investment in London’s transport infrastructure which may have implications for Crossrail 2 going forward. They will provide advice to Government by Budget 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to encourage employers in London to pay the London Living Wage.

Nick Boles

The Government encourages all employers to pay more than the National Minimum Wage and the National Living Wage where they can afford to. The Low Pay Commission’s remit is to set the National Minimum Wage as high as possible without harming employment prospects.

According to Office for Budget Responsibility estimates, the National Living Wage will benefit 2.7 million low wage workers by 2020. The increase in April 2016 to £7.20 from the current NMW of £6.70 will mean a 7.5% increase in hourly pay, and a full time worker will earn £910 more per annum compared to today.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he plans to take to increase the number of gifted overseas students studying in the UK.

Joseph Johnson

The UK welcomes the brightest and best international students and there is no cap on the number that can study here. The Government promotes study in the UK through the Britain is GREAT marketing campaign which has an education pillar and through the Education UK brand and website, which is managed by the British Council. Together these measures promote UK education in over 100 countries, connecting millions of people with the United Kingdom.

The Government also has major education agreements with overseas partners. Key programmes include the UK-China Partners in Education Programme, the UK-India Education Research Initiative and engagement in Brazil’s ‘Science without Borders’ scholarship scheme.

The Government also supports student exchange, such as through the Erasmus Scheme, which enables international students to take short placements in the UK and British students to gain valuable overseas experience.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-21.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the likely change to levels of child poverty resulting from reductions in tax credits in 2015-16.

Damian Hinds

The Government is making changes to Tax Credits which will help put welfare spending on a more sustainable path. The Government wants to move from a low wage, high tax, high welfare society to a higher wage, lower tax, lower welfare society.

We know that work is the best route out of poverty. The intended impact of these reforms is to incentivise work, ensure work always pays, and then allow people to keep more of what they earn.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-16.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to increase voter registration among students.

John Penrose

The move to Individual Electoral Registration has made registration more convenient for students, who can now register online in as little as three minutes on a tablet, smart-phone or PC. Ahead of the elections on 7 May, £530,000 was allocated to organisations that work to encourage student electoral registration, including £380,000 to the National Union of Students. In 2013, the Cabinet Office established the Student Forum, bringing together key organisations representing students and universities, as well as Electoral Registration Officers with significant student populations to foster closer working relationships. We have also worked with Sheffield University and the local Electoral Registration Officer to pilot digital integration of student enrolment with electoral registration and I am keen that we learn from this work.

I am engaged in detailed discussions with a range of Electoral Registration Officers on how to increase registration rates for hard-to-reach groups, including students, and look forward to announcing further details on this soon.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-21.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the effect of reductions in tax credits on levels of housing benefit paid out in 2016-17.

Damian Hinds

The impact of all the government’s policies on housing benefit is accounted for in the housing benefit forecast, which has been certified by the OBR.