Tuesday Volume 645 17 July 2018 No. 173 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Tuesday 17 July 2018 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2018 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 203 17 JULY 2018 204 Mary Creagh (Wakefield) (Lab): Britain needs about House of Commons £22 billion a year of investment in clean energy to meet our legally binding EU renewables targets, but my Tuesday 17 July 2018 Committee heard that, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, investment has collapsed over the past The House met at half-past Eleven o’clock two years. Given that the Brexit White Paper says that the Government believe that there is no need for a PRAYERS common rulebook on environmental or climate change rules, what confidence can investors in offshore or [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] onshore wind have that the Government will support low-carbon energy if we leave? BUSINESS BEFORE QUESTIONS UNIVERSITY OF LONDON BILL [LORDS] Greg Clark: We are very clear in our support for that Second Reading opposed and deferred until Tuesday in the clean growth strategy and, as the hon. Lady can 4 September (Standing Order No. 20). see, in the level of investment that is being made right across the country. It was very clear in the White Paper ROTHERHAM INDEPENDENT REVIEW that followed the Chequers meeting that we had made a Resolved, commitment to the highest of environmental standards. That an humble Address be presented to Her Majesty, That she will be graciously pleased to give directions that there be laid before this House a Return of a Paper, entitled The Rotherham Peter Kyle (Hove) (Lab): I recently visited the Rampion Independent Review: a review into information passed to the Home offshore wind farm, which is a stunning achievement, Office in connection with allegations of Child Sexual Abuse in supplying enough power for a third of Sussex’s needs. Is Rotherham (1998-2005), volumes I and II, dated 17 July 2018.— the Secretary of State also looking at how to expand (Rebecca Harris.) existing wind farms as well as just building new ones, particularly if it can be done in a way that does not have Oral Answers to Questions a visual impact from land? Greg Clark: The hon. Gentleman makes an excellent BUSINESS, ENERGY AND INDUSTRIAL point. There is the opportunity, through the auctions STRATEGY that have been so successful, for expansions to come forward and be proposed, but he should also be aware The Secretary of State was asked— that, given the leadership that we have in this area, we Offshore Wind Sector are also leading in replacing blades and turbines when they come to the ends of their life. That is a very 1. Peter Aldous (Waveney) (Con): What steps he is important source of jobs that will be available to the taking to support growth in the offshore wind sector. exports markets around the world as well. [906485] The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Drew Hendry (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strategy (Greg Clark): Offshore wind has been a fantastic Strathspey) (SNP): Offshore wind has an excellent strike UK success story. Costs have halved and jobs have been price of £57.50 per megawatt-hour, yet this Government’s created. In my hon. Friend’s constituency, the port of dogma will see consumers locked into paying £20 to Lowestoft has been a construction base for the Galloper £40 more per megawatt-hour for new nuclear. If that project. It will shortly become the base for East Anglia was not enough of a hit on family budgets, it has been ONE’s 25-year operations and maintenance work. We reported that the Government will use the public purse want to build on that success. Our clean growth strategy to let Hitachi off the hook for the cost of any safety said that we could see a further 10 GW of new capacity breaches at its Wylfa nuclear plant. Is it not time that in the 2020s. There is the opportunity for additional this Tory Government ended their obsession with outdated, deployment if that is cost-effective. expensive and risky nuclear and put the public and consumers first? Peter Aldous: I am grateful to the Secretary of State for that answer and I will be at the opening of the East Anglia One operations and maintenance base on Friday in Greg Clark: It is always necessary to have a diverse Lowestoft. Offshore wind, as he said, is bringing significant source of energy supplies, and nuclear has made and benefits to coastal communities, though to realise its does make a big contribution to that: about 20% of our full potential there is the need to ensure that local people and current electricity comes from nuclear. That is very businesses have every opportunity to take part in the important for households and businesses, including in success story. Can he confirm that this will be the Scotland. Every new project has to be assessed as value Government’sNo. 1 priority in the forthcoming sector deal? for money for the taxpayer and consumers and that will continue to be a criterion that will be rigorously imposed. Greg Clark: My hon. Friend makes an excellent point. I hope that the event later in the week goes well; I Renewable Power-Generating Companies am sure it will. He is absolutely right that part of the industrial strategy, in particular the local industrial strategies, is to make sure that the benefits of these 2. Jeff Smith (Manchester, Withington) (Lab): What investments are available to the local workforce, and I his policy is on supporting small and medium-sized know that he will work very closely with new Anglia renewable power generating companies after the scheduled local enterprise partnership to ensure that that is the case. closure of the feed-in tariff scheme. [906486] 205 Oral Answers 17 JULY 2018 Oral Answers 206 The Minister for Energy and Clean Growth (Claire Perry): Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices The hon. Gentleman will know, because there are more than 6,000 installations in Manchester alone, that the 3. Alex Norris (Nottingham North) (Lab/Co-op): feed-in tariff scheme has been hugely successful in What progress he has made on planned consultations attracting investment in small-scale renewable electricity, on (a) employment status, (b) agency workers and delivering more than 800,000 installations across the (c) enforcement of employment rights as a result of the country. Partly as a result of that scheme, costs of the recommendations of the Taylor review of modern working technology have dropped dramatically, but also because practices. [906487] of the success of the scheme, it became, as he will know, very unaffordable. I am very aware of the need to set out what the next stage of small-scale renewable investment 15. Jo Stevens (Cardiff Central) (Lab): What progress looks like, and I look forward to doing so shortly. he has made on planned consultations on (a) employment status, (b) agency workers and (c) enforcement of Jeff Smith: Businesses are very aware of the need too. employment rights as a result of the recommendations There are thousands of stakeholders in the renewables of the Taylor review of modern working practices. industry who need to understand the regulatory framework [906501] that they will be operating under when the feed-in tariff ends. The Government promised an update on the TheMinisterforEnergyandCleanGrowth(ClairePerry): approach to small-scale renewables by the end of last In the Government’sresponse to the review,we committed year, but we have heard nothing. Will the Minister to take forward recommendations to improve clarity on please tell us today when the feed-in tariff consultation employment status, boost protections for agency workers will be published? andincreasestateenforcementof basicrightsforvulnerable workers. Consultations finished last month, and we have Claire Perry: I share entirely the hon. Gentleman’s had more than 420 responses. I give huge thanks to all desire for us to get on with it. In fact, I have met many stakeholders who contributed; we will be responding representatives of the sectors. We just have to get the very shortly. scheme right. We must not create something that causes a bonanza for people who are gaming the system or that Alex Norris: Insecure work weakens our economy. puts up bills for consumers. We are very aware of the Last week the Office for National Statistics reported need to provide certainty for investors, and I look falls in manufacturing and construction output. The forward to doing so soon. past few weeks have been dominated by Ministers worrying about their jobs. When will the Government have a 17. [906503] Martyn Day (Linlithgow and East Falkirk) (SNP): Solar power has been shut out of clean power functioning industrial strategy that worries about my options for three years, and onshore wind vilified. Will constituents’ jobs? the Minister heed the National Infrastructure Commission’s recommendations to forgo new nuclear investment in Claire Perry: I am sure the hon. Gentleman and his favour of bringing back clean power options for cheap constituents will welcome today’s news that we have and established renewables? record employment in the British economy. We totally agree with him that the future of work is good work, Claire Perry: I can only refer to the comments of my which is why we commissioned the Taylor review and right hon. Friend the Secretary of State. We want to want to deal with the challenges of the gig economy. I provide a balanced, secure energy supply that keeps hope that we will get cross-party support for those vital bills down for consumers.