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1252389

registered interest
date	16/11/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Energy: Waste
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of including energy from waste incineration emissions in the UK's net-zero plans.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	115747
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/11/2020 answer text <p>The UK’s climate change framework enables the Government to determine how best to balance emissions reductions across the economy. Emissions are managed within the Government’s overall strategy for meeting carbon budgets and the 2050 net zero target, as part of an economy-wide transition.</p><p> </p><p>The UK follows the agreed international approach for estimating and reporting greenhouse gas emissions under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol, which is for countries to report the emissions produced within their territories.</p><p> </p><p>The Climate Change Act defines UK emissions as being those of greenhouse gases from sources within the UK, i.e. consistent with international reporting practice. Therefore all emissions from UK sources, including those produced in energy production through waste incineration, are accounted for.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 19/11/2020 16:05:04 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1249659

registered interest
date	09/11/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Climate Change Convention: USA
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the election of Joe Biden as US President Elect on the COP26 summit.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	113175
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/11/2020 answer text <p>The UK welcomes President-elect Biden’s commitment to re-join the Paris Agreement and to put the US on a path to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.</p><p>As the incoming Presidency of the G7 and COP26, we look forward to working with the new US administration to address the urgent challenge of climate change and to encourage countries across the world to increase their climate ambition.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 12/11/2020 17:05:00 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1201448

registered interest
date	08/06/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Renewable Energy: Sales
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of opening up the sale of locally produced renewable electricity.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	56101
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2020 answer text <p>The current licensing framework, which Ofgem operate and enforce, already allows electricity generators to apply for a licence to sell energy to consumers. A supplier licence allows the licensee to supply electricity to domestic and non-domestic premises, or non-domestic premises only. It also bestows upon them certain obligations towards consumers through standard licence conditions (SLC) and also charges to be passed onto consumers, such as network costs and the cost of Government policies. In addition, the licensee is required to maintain, become party to, or comply with the industry codes that underpin the wholesale and retail markets.</p><p> </p><p>Nonetheless, Ofgem recognises that a one size fits all licensing framework may be too prescriptive for some business models and introduced a Licence Lite which allows aspiring suppliers or distributed energy generators to apply for a supply licence and receive a direction which relieves them from the obligation in SLC 11.2 – compliance with industry codes. In addition, Ofgem have introduced a regulatory sandbox in which innovators can try new products and business models.</p><p> </p><p>Government and Ofgem are reviewing the licensing framework in light of changing business models and our commitment to reach Net Zero. We want to ensure that the regulatory regime continues to protect consumers and is flexible in response to a changing energy system.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 16/06/2020 14:29:52 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1188466

registered interest
date	20/04/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Natural Gas: Inspections
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he plans to require that utility companies pause non-urgent gas inspections during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	37874
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/04/2020 answer text <p>Under Gas Supplier Licence Condition 29 (SLC29) Gas Suppliers are required on request to carry out free annual gas safety checks to certain vulnerable domestic customers living in non-rented premises.</p><p> </p><p>In the current circumstances, Ofgem does not consider it is necessary for it to relax Condition 29 because gas suppliers undertake their free annual gas safety checks only on request by and with the permission of the customer.</p><p> </p><p>This position is held under the current circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic provided that relevant parties follow the Government guidance, public health advice and safety legislation more generally. Ofgem’s Chief Executive Jonathan Brearley wrote to the energy supply companies on 8 April 2020 setting out the expectations of them during the COVID-19 outbreak and reminding them of their primary need to follow this guidance, public health advice and safety legislation.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 28/04/2020 15:33:02 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1182681

registered interest
date	04/03/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Energy: Meters
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department plans to take steps to ensure that households with pre-paid electricity meters continue to have electricity in the event that occupants are required to self-isolate as a result of covid-19.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	25171
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/03/2020 answer text <p>At the end of 2019 36% of all prepayment meters were smart meters in pre-payment mode, which enable energy consumers to top up without needing to leave their homes.</p><p> </p><p>There are existing general protections for traditional prepayment meter customers who are unable to access top-up outlets, including emergency credit if credit has been exhausted on the meter. Suppliers also operate a friendly hour’s policy, when supply would not be interrupted, normally during evenings, weekends and Bank Holidays.</p><p> </p><p>For traditional prepayment meters, suppliers can also send pre-loaded keycards to customers to provide additional credit, where consumers need to self-isolate for a longer period of time. The consumer would need to inform their supplier that they need assistance.</p><p> </p><p>The Department is actively engaging with Ofgem and industry to ensure all customers receive the support they need.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 09/03/2020 16:52:32 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1169553

registered interest
date	08/01/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Renewable Energy
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what additional steps her Department has taken to increase the supply of renewable energy production.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	1422
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/01/2020 answer text <p>This Government is committed to meeting net zero by 2050, and in 2019, the Government became the first major economy in the world to have legislated for a net zero target to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from across the UK economy by 2050. We agree with the Committee on Climate Change’s view on the importance of a diverse mix of power generation sources to achieve that with renewables providing the majority of our electricity by 2050 alongside firm low carbon power from sources such as nuclear, and gas or biomass generation with carbon capture and storage.</p><p>The Government has introduced many initiatives to increase the supply of renewable energy production in the UK and with this support, carbon emissions have reduced by 42%, while the economy has grown by 73% since 1990. We have also seen rapid deployment of solar PV over the last 8 years, with over 99% of the UK’s solar PV capacity deployed since May 2010 and half of the world’s offshore wind deploying in the UK. We have committed up to £557m of annual support for future Contracts for Difference, providing developers with the confidence they need to invest in bringing forward new projects and we are supporting our world-leading offshore wind industry through the 2019 sector deal.</p><p>In order to support smaller scale renewable electricity generation, the Government introduced the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) on 1 January, which gives small scale low-carbon electricity generators, such as homes with solar panels, the right to be paid for the renewable electricity they export to the grid. Unlike the previous Feed-in Tariff scheme, the SEG is a market-driven mechanism. It paves the way to projects being deployed without subsidies.</p><p>The Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) supports the transition to low-carbon heating in the UK, helping generate renewable heat for schools, hospitals and more than 12,000 social housing properties. The scheme is designed to bridge the gap between the cost of fossil fuel heat sources and renewable heat alternatives through financial support for owners of participating installations. The RHI helps to sustain and build the supply-chains needed to deliver our aspirations for renewable heat in 2020 and beyond</p><p>We are working to develop a new policy framework for the long-term decarbonisation of heat. We have committed to publishing a policy roadmap in summer 2020. This will set out the programme of work required to enable key strategic decisions in the first half of 2020 on how we achieve mass transition to low carbon heating.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 14/01/2020 11:44:03 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng previous answer version 742 answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1168359

registered interest
date	19/12/2019
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Energy: Meters
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment her Department has made of the effect on people on low incomes of increasing the minimum top up amount on a prepayment meter; and whether she has had discussions with (a) British Gas and (b) other energy providers on such a change.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	174
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2020 answer text <p>British Gas are introducing a minimum top up of £5 for most of their prepayment customers starting on 1 January. This is a commercial decision of British Gas. Although a £5 minimum top up is not uncommon practice amongst suppliers, there are many that offer a minimum top up of £1.</p><p> </p><p>BEIS officials are liaising with Ofgem to confirm whether they were given prior notification of British Gas’ decision, and also that British Gas has met its obligation to treat customers fairly and ensure that each customer was provided with information about the assistance and advice that is available to them.</p><p> </p><p>Customers are protected through the price caps on standard variable and prepayment meter tariffs. A key challenge now is for suppliers to put the consumer first and improve their customer service.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 07/01/2020 13:45:05 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1168363

registered interest
date	19/12/2019
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Energy: Prices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether her Department plans to commission an independent review into the cost of energy.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	177
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2020 answer text <p>The government plans to publish an Energy White Paper in 2020, which will address the transformation of the energy system in line with our net zero commitment and will set out the importance of affordable energy in support of a high productivity economy.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 07/01/2020 10:13:07 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1150991

registered interest
date	21/10/2019
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Solar Power
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Answer of 8 October 2019 to Question 293680 on Solar Power: Statistics, what assessment his Department has made of whether the the Solar photovoltaics deployment report provides (a) adequate and (b) reliable real time data on local generation to enable smart management of local supplies; and what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that Ofgem has the (i) data and (ii) resources necessary to accurately map local generation.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	2822
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/10/2019 answer text <p>The Solar photovoltaics deployment report does not currently include unsubsidised solar installations below 1MW capacity that are not registered on the Microgeneration Certification Scheme database, although we are reviewing data sources and working with industry to improve coverage.</p><p> </p><p>In addition to this, the Government has recently endorsed the five key recommendations from the Energy Data Taskforce and is working with Ofgem, Innovate UK and industry to implement them. As part of this work we are also considering the way forward to improve the collection and sharing of asset and operational data from various distributed energy resources (which includes solar PVs). The Government has also asked Ofgem to report annually on the Smart Export Guarantee.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 24/10/2019 10:12:46 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1148826

registered interest
date	14/10/2019
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Energy: Meters
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps she is taking to help ensure households that (a) don't want and (b) are unable to have a smart meter installed can access the cheapest available energy deals.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	303
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/10/2019 answer text <p>Customers with smart meters are cheaper to serve for energy suppliers, and the Government expects the associated savings to be passed on. We are already seeing some suppliers offering cheaper tariffs for customers with smart meters or those that agree to have them installed.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has acted to protect consumers regardless of meter type. That is why we introduced a market cap on energy prices which protects up to 11 million households on standard variable and default tariffs, in addition to the 4 million households protected by Ofgem’s Safeguard Tariff cap.</p> answering member constituency Spelthorne answering member printed Kwasi Kwarteng question first answered 17/10/2019 14:41:10 answering member 4134 label Biography information for Kwasi Kwarteng
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West