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15 Sep 2008 : Column 2101W—continued
British Wind Energy Association: Finance
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much the British Wind Energy Association received from the public purse in each of the last five years. [220698]
Malcolm Wicks: The British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) is a non-governmental trade association funded by its membership.
The Department does not hold records of funding by other Government Departments of the BWEA’s activities.
The BWEA has won several contracts for work tendered by this Department. The Department has also co-funded a number of projects undertaken by the BWEA.
The total funding in each financial year from 2003-04 onwards is set out in the following table.
| Financial year( 1) | Contribution (£) |
| (1) In some cases payments made in one financial year may relate to activities undertaken in another financial year. | |
Broadband
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what recent discussions he has had with telecommunication providers on the delivery of broadband services to remote parts of the UK; and if he will make a statement. [216983]
Malcolm Wicks: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has had meetings with telecoms companies including BT, Virgin Media and Sky in recent months, when the subject of broadband was discussed and where rural broadband supply was part, but not the exclusive subject of those discussions.
Bromine
Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when he last met representatives of the bromine industry. [220667]
Malcolm Wicks [holding answer 21 July 2008]: There have been no recent meetings between the bromine industry and BERR Ministers.
Business: Females
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what steps he has taken to provide support for black and ethnic minority women entrepreneurs. [208439]
Mr. McFadden: The Enterprise Strategy, published in March 2008 as part of the Budget, recognises the important role that all women can play in driving up enterprise activity in the UK and has proposed a number of measures that will support women entrepreneurs, including those from black and other ethnic minority backgrounds, and provide them with the knowledge and skills that will allow them to see enterprise and business ownership as open to them. Those measures include provision for £12.5 million of Government capital through a women’s investment fund; women's business centre pilots; enhanced mentoring support; a new national enterprise centre of expertise; and activity aimed at opening up procurement opportunities to women owned businesses.
In addition, in June 2007, the Government announced the launch of the Ethnic Minority Business Task Force. As well as making recommendations to Government on the further development of policy, the task force will help to foster growth among ethnic minority firms and boost economic participation by ethnic minority entrepreneurs.
Carbon Emissions: Energy
Mrs. James: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment he has made of progress made by UK energy companies in reducing their carbon dioxide emissions. [218206]
Malcolm Wicks: Information on carbon dioxide emissions from the UK energy supply sector are published annually by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on their website at:
The latest available data relate to the calendar year 2006, and they show that emissions from this sector were 220.835 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, which represents a reduction of 8.9 per cent. since 1990. The energy supply sector accounts for 39.7 per cent. of all carbon dioxide emissions in the UK.
Carbon Sequestration
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what discussions his Department has had with other EU Governments on development of carbon capture storage policy; and if he will make a statement. [208484]
Malcolm Wicks: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I have had many discussions with other EU Governments on the development of carbon capture and storage (CCS) policy.
EU leaders have recognised the potential of CCS and at the Spring Council 2007 agreed to bring about the necessary technical, economic and regulatory framework to bring environmentally safe CCS to markets, by 2020 if possible. This included an ambition for up to 12 demonstration projects by 2015. The UK Government are strongly committed to working with the EU partners to support these aspirations.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what steps his Department is (a) taking and (b) planning to take to encourage greater international collaboration in relation to carbon capture and storage technologies; what steps he plans to take to encourage other countries to establish carbon capture and storage initiatives; and if he will make a statement. [219400]
Malcolm Wicks: The Department undertakes a number of activities aimed at fostering greater international collaboration in relation to carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies and encouraging other countries to establish carbon capture and storage initiatives. These include:
Active membership of multilateral organisations dedicated to making rapid progress towards deployment of CCS, including the
International Energy Agency's Greenhouse Gas and Clean Coal programmes and their Working Party on Fossil Fuels, and the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF).
Founder member, with Norway, of the North Sea Basin Task Force (now including Germany and the Netherlands) which aims to develop common principles that could form a basis for regulating the storage of CO2 in the North sea.
Funding, in partnership with DEFRA, the Phase 1 assessment of the wider EU-China Near-Zero Emissions Coal agreement signed in 2005, which has the objective of commercial demonstration of CCS for coal fired power generation in China by 2020.
Bilateral work with several countries (including the US, Australia, Canada, France, India) to undertake various activities to promote the deployment of CCS.
Specific actions undertaken by the Department, outside of the above activities, in recent months to promote CCS technologies internationally include:
A significant lobbying exercise to push for ambitious wording in the G8 Energy Ministers most recent statement, including supporting the recommendation from the International Energy Agency that 20 CCS demonstration projects should be launched globally by 2010.
Announcing our intention to host, in autumn 2009, the next CSLF ministerial conference—this conference will help to deliver renewed momentum in the move towards commercially deployable CCS technologies through the only international forum dedicated to promoting them.
Lobbying for agreement at the June European Council for the European Commission to be directed to bring forward as soon as possible a financial mechanism to incentivise the construction and operation of up to 12 demonstration projects by 2015.
Working closely with the European Commission and other member states to ensure the quick agreement of the draft directive on the geological storage of carbon dioxide.
Lobbying key countries in relation to the inclusion of CCS in the Clean Development Mechanism.
We will continue to build on this activity and our multi-lateral and bilateral links over the coming months to promote greater international collaboration on CCS, encouraging other countries to make strong commitments to CCS initiatives along the lines of those by the UK Government, including support for demonstration projects.
Mr. Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will place in the public domain the report of the consulting engineers on the feasibility of a UK-based carbon capture and storage demonstration plant pre-Budget report of 2006. [221449]
Malcolm Wicks: The report announced in the 2006 pre-Budget report was commissioned to ensure that our understanding of the costs of a CCS plant based in the UK was robust before taking a decision on whether to support such a project. The evidence in the report is taken from several companies who were considering CCS projects, is commercially sensitive and subject to confidentiality agreements, which means that it would not be appropriate to publish the report.
Carers: Finance
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform pursuant to paragraph 3.11 in the Carers at the Heart of 21st-century families and communities report, how much of the £150 million funding for breaks for carers of disabled children his Department will provide in each of the next two years. [220312]
Mr. McFadden: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State with responsibilty for care services on 22 July 2008, Official Report, column 1087W.
Climate Change: International Cooperation
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how the Government plan to take forward the commitment to work through the G8 on (a) climate change mitigation-related technology co-operation strategies, (b) the promotion of the exchange of mitigation information and analysis on sectoral efficiency and (c) the identification of national technology needs and voluntary, action-oriented international co-operation, as set out in the G8 declaration on Energy Security and Climate Change of 9 July; and what additional resources will be made available for these purposes. [218869]
Malcolm Wicks: We are working with Japan, other G8 countries and the International Energy Agency (IEA) to take forward the G8 commitments. These cover: (i) an international initiative on energy technology research and development; (ii) further IEA analysis of sectoral efficiency; and (iii) the first meeting of the International Partnership on Energy Efficiency Co-operation, which will look at increasing efficiency in key sectors. The International Energy Agency is currently drawing up a programme of work to support the G8 agreement. In addition, Japan will host a G8 Energy Forum in the autumn which will focus on energy efficiency and international co-operation on low carbon, energy technologies.
Coal
Mrs. Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what plans he has for expenditure on clean coal technology over the next 10 years. [220099]
Malcolm Wicks: In November 2007 the Government announced a competition for one of the world’s first commercial-scale demonstrations of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technology on a coal fired power plant. The project is scheduled to start operation in 2014. BERR is also committed to spending £2.2 million on the development of an Oxy-Fuel Combustion (CO2 capture) demonstration system during 2008 to 2010, and a programme of support for CCS is under consideration by the Energy Technologies Institute.
The Government announced in the 2008 Budget that a new call for project proposals will be made shortly under the Environmental Transformation Fund. This will include support for the development of component parts of Carbon Capture and Storage and for other carbon abatement technologies.
In addition clean coal technology research and development continues to be supported under the Research Councils’ Energy Programme and the Technology Strategy Board’s Technology Programme. Public sector funding for the Research Councils and the Technology Strategy Board is provided by the Department for Innovation Universities and Skills.
Coal Fired Power Stations: Kingsnorth
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (1) what fuel oil grade will be used to fire the two 50MW gas turbines at the proposed coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth; [189691]
(2) whether the proposed two 50MW oil-fired gas turbines proposed at the new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth will be run as a high demand top-up for the grid. [189757]
Malcolm Wicks: The turbines would be for “black start” purposes only and would be fuelled by light fuel oil which is a blend of heavy fuel oil and gas oil to British Standard 2869 class D/DIN51603.
Companies
Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many companies removed from (a) the Register of Companies in England and Wales and (b) the Register of Companies in Scotland by Companies House in 2007 had (i) not previously filed a set of accounts and (ii) accounts overdue at the time of their removal; and how many of those with accounts overdue had (A) one, (B) two and (C) three sets of accounts overdue. [221720]
Mr. Thomas: This information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Companies Investigation Branch
Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will ask his Department’s Companies Investigation Branch to enquire of liquidators Moore Stephens of Stoke-on-Trent as to the reasons why no Statement of Affairs has been filed at Companies House in respect of the liquidation of Pubscene Limited. [206603]
Mr. McFadden [holding answer 18 May 2008]: Pubscene Limited went into compulsory liquidation on 23 September 2003, and the Official Receiver became liquidator of the company on the making of the winding-up order. From information currently available, it appears the Official Receiver exercised his discretion not to require a formal Statement of Affairs to be submitted by the directors of the company. In cases where the Official Receiver requires a formal Statement of Affairs, the legislation provides that the Statement be filed at Court and not at Companies House.
On 3 November 2003, the Secretary of State appointed an insolvency practitioner, Mr. Abdulali of Moore Stephens as liquidator of the company. There are no provisions in insolvency legislation providing for liquidators in compulsory liquidations, other than the Official Receiver, to obtain and file information by way of a formal Statement of Affairs.
Companies Investigations Branch
Mr. Hoban:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many investigations the Companies Investigations Branch
(a) began and (b) completed in each of the last 10 years; and what proportion led to (i) prosecution and (ii) conviction. [215152]
Mr. McFadden: An investigation is a fact-finding exercise. It may show that there has been no irregularity or malpractice in which case the process ends. In many cases, however, information obtained during an inquiry is a basis for further action, either by BERR or by others. This may take the form of a winding-up of the company, prosecution, directors’ disqualification or some form of regulatory action. In order to provide a more complete picture of the results of CIB investigations I have included the number of winding-up orders obtained and the number of directors disqualified.
Figures are not separately available in respect of prosecutions and convictions following a CIB investigation. Information from a CIB investigation which may lead to a criminal prosecution may be passed to BERR Legal Services for action; if successful the resulting prosecutions and convictions are included with the figures for the Insolvency Service. However, BERR is only one of a number of investigatory and enforcement bodies and the reports of CIB investigators may also lead to prosecutions by other prosecuting authorities for example the Serious Fraud Office.
I would add that the information that the hon. Member requests has been published on an annual basis in a report to Parliament entitled “Companies in (year)” until 2006-07 since when it has been published in the Annual Report and Accounts of the Insolvency Service.
| Companies Investigation Branch investigations | ||||
| Investigations begun | Investigations completed | Companies wound up | Directors disqualified | |
| (1) The number of investigations in 2002-03 includes 289 companies linked to two specific investigations. (2) The number of winding-up in 2003-04 includes 289 companies linked to two specific investigations. | ||||
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