Transplant Surgery: Yorkshire and the Humber
Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time for (a) kidney, (b) liver and (c) heart transplants was in (i) Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Hospitals Trust and (ii) Yorkshire and Humber in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [102300]
Anne Milton: The information requested is not available in the format requested. Information regarding average waiting times for kidney, liver and heart transplant is recorded by transplant centres only. I refer my right hon. Friend to the reply I gave him on 22 March 2012, Official Report, columns 801-03W which gives information nationally by transplant centre.
Ministerial Travel
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he last travelled by (a) bus and (b) taxi in the course of his official duties. [102495]
Mr Simon Burns: In line with the Ministerial Code, Ministers make regular use of public transport where practicable. However, details of the mode of public transport used on particular occasions are not routinely recorded.
Tuberculosis
Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many people have been (a) diagnosed with and (b) treated for tuberculosis in the last five years for which figures are available; [102296]
(2) how many people were (a) diagnosed with and (b) treated for tuberculosis in (i) Haltemprice and Howden constituency and (ii) Yorkshire and Humber in the last five years for which figures are available. [102299]
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Anne Milton: The information requested is only partially available in the format requested. Such information as is available is given in the following three tables.
| Table 1: Tuberculosis (TB) case reports for England and Yorkshire and the Humber, for the five-year period 2006-10 | ||
| Number of cases | ||
| England | Yorkshire and the Humber | |
| Note: Data for 2011 will be available later this year. Source: Health Protection Agency | ||
| Table 2: TB case reports for East Riding of Yorkshire unitary authority for the five-year period covering 2006-10 | |
| Year grouping | Average number of cases |
| Notes: 1. Data is provided for East Riding unitary authority as data at constituency level are not available. 2. Three-year average numbers are provided because the number of cases in each local authority per year are often less than five, and could result in deductive disclosure of identity. Source: Health Protection Agency | |
| Table 3: Number of cases reported to have completed treatment within one year, in England, Yorkshire and Humber and East Riding unitary authority, for the five-year period 2005-09 | |||
| Treatment completed | |||
| England | Yorkshire and the Humber | East Riding unitary authority | |
| Notes: 1. Treatment completion rates are calculated after 12 months as most TB treatment is for six months, but some forms of TB (e.g. drug-resistant or other than pulmonary) may require longer treatment and therefore one year is allowed. The latest available year for which data are currently available are for treatment started in December 2009. Data on treatment completion for 2010 will be available later this year. 2. To prevent deductive disclosure of identity, where cases are less than five, they have been expressed as <5. Source: Health Protection Agency | |||
Tuberculosis: Prisoners
Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has any plans to reinstate a tuberculosis nurse within the prison health service. [101806]
Paul Burstow: The prevention, diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis (TB) is a priority for the Department and prisons have been identified as an important setting for TB control. TB nurses have an essential role in delivering care. Prisons do not usually employ TB nurses directly, with care programmes delivered in partnership between prison-based and community-based health service providers.
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Commissioning responsibility for prison healthcare transferred from the Prison Service to the national health service in 2006. Since this date, primary care trusts have provided or commissioned health services, including prison TB services, informed by a health needs assessment of the prison population.
From 2013, the National Health Service Commissioning Board will be responsible for commissioning health services for those in prison and other detained settings.
Vodafone Group
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many contracts Vodafone has been awarded by his Department in the last 12 months; [103229]
(2) what contracts his Department has with Vodafone; [103230]
(3) how many times the Permanent Secretary in his Department has met Vodafone representatives in the last 12 months. [103231]
Mr Simon Burns: The core Department of Health has not awarded any new contracts to Vodafone within the last 12 months. Connecting for Health have awarded one contract to Vodafone in the last 12 months.
The core Department has a single contract with Vodafone to provide and supply mobile devices and connectivity as part of the central Government framework agreement.
NHS Connecting for Health has a contract with Vodafone for mobile device services under the Government Procurement Service Framework Agreement for Mobile Voice and Data services.
The Permanent Secretary of the Department has not met any representatives of Vodafone in the last 12 months.
Treasury
Alcoholic Drinks: Prices
Mr Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment his Department has made of the effects of introducing a minimum per unit price for alcoholic drinks on levels of (a) smuggling and (b) legal purchases of alcoholic drinks in other EU countries for private import to the UK. [102510]
Miss Chloe Smith: The Government have assessed impacts of minimum alcohol pricing using standard modelling methodologies. This included the possibility of some consumption being shifted to non UK duty paid sources. Description of HM Revenue and Customs’ methodology used to model alcohol consumption in the UK is available online at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/research/alcohol-consumption-uk.pdf
Further analysis of the effects of introducing a minimum per unit price for alcoholic drinks on levels of alcohol smuggling and cross border shopping will be performed during the consultation process to inform the policy impact assessment.
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Arch Cru
Jim Shannon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has received from investors in Arch Cru. [102576]
Mr Hoban: The Treasury has received representations on this issue from a range of stakeholders. As with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to disclose details of all such representations.
Child Benefit
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the costs of setting up and administering the process to assess and make payments of child benefit to individuals whose earnings are between £50,000 and £60,000 per year. [102462]
Mr Gauke: The Chancellor's Budget 2012 announcements about child benefit do not change the eligibility criteria for child benefit or the process for assessing and making payments of child benefit. Where a person is currently entitled to receive child benefit they will continue to be entitled to receive payments regardless of whether they or their partner is a taxpayer with income over £50,000. A new income tax charge, levied through existing pay-as-you-earn and self assessment systems, will be applied to taxpayers whose income exceeds £50,000 and who are either in receipt of child benefit or whose partner is in receipt of child benefit. The estimated administrative costs of this new charge can be found in the Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) which was published on HMRC's website:
www.hmrc.gov.uk
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of people who earned between £50,000 and £60,000 and were in receipt of child benefit in each parliamentary constituency in the UK at the latest date for which figures are available. [102466]
Mr Gauke: This information is not available.
Mr Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the high income child benefit charge will be calculated on the basis of income and child benefit received in the same financial year. [102970]
Mr Gauke: The amount of the new high income child benefit charge will be based on the amount of income and child benefit for the same tax year. Further details were published in the Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) which was published on HMRC's website:
www.hmrc.gov.uk
Mr Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will calculate by how much the annual gross yield of the high income child benefit charge would be reduced if child benefit payable in respect of (a) children aged under five and (b) children aged five and over but under eight was exempted from the charge. [102971]
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Mr Gauke: This information would be available only at disproportionate cost.
Corporation Tax
Mr Mudie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish anonymised data on how much corporation tax was paid by each FTSE 100 company in each of the last five years. [103131]
Mr Gauke: We will not be publishing anonymised data on the corporation tax paid by FTSE 100 companies.
Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs has a statutory duty to maintain taxpayer confidentiality and may not disclose information unless the limited and controlled circumstances set out in the statute creating HMRC apply. It is a criminal offence for HMRC staff unlawfully to disclose any information about a taxpayer who is identified in the disclosure or whose identity can be deduced from it.
Even if the information about the corporation tax paid is anonymised, it will be possible to match it with other information already in the public domain to identify the FTSE 100 company.
Credit Unions
Mark Lancaster: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to encourage the use of credit unions as an alternative lending mechanism. [100401]
Mr Hoban: The Government welcome the contribution that credit unions make in providing greater choice and diversity in financial services.
The Legislative Reform Order for Industrial and Provident Societies and Credit Unions came into force on 8 January 2012. It made major changes to the regulatory and legislative framework for credit unions, for example allowing businesses to become members for the first time. These changes will increase the appeal of credit unions to the local community and help them to increase their capacity to lend to their members.
Devolution: Finance
Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which measures announced in the Budget generate a Barnett consequential payment to devolved Administrations; what the (a) value and (b) purpose of any such payments are; and whether any payments are to be made to devolved Administrations outside the formula. [102192]
Danny Alexander: The following Barnett consequentials were given to the devolved Administrations in Budget 2012:
| £ million | |||
| 2012-13 | 2013-14 | 2014-15 | |
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No payments were made to devolved Administrations outside of the Barnett formula.
Economic Growth: Northern Ireland
Vernon Coaker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the level of economic growth in Northern Ireland in (a) 2012, (b) 2013, (c) 2014 and (d) 2015. [102052]
Miss Chloe Smith: The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) produced the official forecast for economic growth as part of the March 2012 Economic and Fiscal Outlook, published on 21 March 2012.
The OBR forecast that the UK economy will grow in 2012 and in every subsequent year of the forecast, but they have not published growth forecasts for the devolved countries and regions.
Energy: Finance
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the outcomes were of his discussions with his G20 counterparts at the recent meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors in Mexico on energy subsidy reform. [101815]
Miss Chloe Smith: At the recent G20 meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Mexico City on 25-26 February a wide range of issues were discussed, including on energy. At the G20 summit in Cannes on 3-4 November 2011, leaders asked their Finance and Energy Ministers to report back on the progress made in implementing country-specific strategies at the June 2012 summit in Mexico.
Fuels: Prices
Mr Iain Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the relationship between the price of (a) oil and (b) petrol and levels of economic growth; and if he will make a statement. [103046]
Miss Chloe Smith: The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is responsible for producing independent economic and fiscal forecasts. In their most recent economic and fiscal outlook (published 21 March), the OBR estimated that an immediate $50 shock to the oil price would lead to GDP growth in 2012-13 falling from their central forecast of 1.0% to 0.3%. Supplementary analysis by the OBR suggests that a 20% increase in the price of oil reduces actual output by approximately 0.2% compared to a baseline scenario.
Growing Places Fund
Mr Marsden:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) to which financial year he has allocated the increase
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in the Growing Places Fund which was announced in his Budget Statement of 21 March 2012; [101954]
(2) how much additional funding will be provided from the Growing Places Fund as part of the funding announced in the 2012 Budget broken down by local enterprise partnerships excluding the £70 million allocated for the Greater London Authority. [101953]
Danny Alexander [holding answer 26 March 2012]: The additional £270 million for the Growing Places Fund, announced in Budget 2012, will be allocated to Local Enterprise Partnerships in the 2011-12 financial year. The breakdown of additional funding by Local Enterprise Partnership, excluding the London allocation, is set out in annex A.
| Annex A | |
| Local Enterprise Partnership | Allocation (£ million) |
Housing: Construction
Paul Flynn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of the new funding allocated to the Get Britain Building Fund will be spent on housing in Wales. [102198]
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Miss Chloe Smith: £7.8 million has been made available to the Welsh Government as a result of the new funding announced for the Get Britain Building Fund at Budget 2012. This is in addition to the £21.9 million made available at autumn statement, 29 November 2011, Official Report¸ columns 799-810.
Income Tax: Pensioners
Luciana Berger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the number of pensioners who pay income tax in (a) the North West, (b) Liverpool and (c) Liverpool, Wavertree constituency. [102586]
Mr Gauke: There were an estimated 603,000 pension age taxpayers in the North West in 2009-10, of these 25,000 were in Liverpool and 5,000 were in the Liverpool, Wavertree constituency.
Estimates are based on the 2009-10 Survey of Personal Incomes.
Members: Correspondence
Graham Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Financial Secretary to the Treasury plans to respond to the letter of 19 January 2012 from the hon. Member for Weaver Vale on behalf of Caradoc Jones. [102988]
Mr Hoban: I have replied to my hon. Friend.
NHS: Private Finance Initiative
Julie Elliott: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of companies in receipt of public funding from NHS private finance initiative schemes which are based overseas. [102441]
Danny Alexander: For each PFI project, a special purpose project company is established by the private sector equity sponsors. It is with this project company that the public sector authority contracts under PFI for the delivery of an asset and services over the project term.
For most sectors, the project contract requires the project company to confirm that it is a UK resident company, and to undertake that it will remain so for the duration of the contract.
The Treasury does not hold information on any PFI contracts that would indicate that project companies have migrated overseas, however the Treasury and HMRC cannot verify this as the Treasury does not hold the names of the special purpose project company for each PFI project—this information is held by each procuring authority.
Julie Elliott: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward proposals to prevent companies in receipt of funding from NHS private finance initiative schemes basing themselves overseas to avoid being liable for taxation in the UK. [102442]
Danny Alexander:
For each PFI project a special purpose project company is established by the private sector equity sponsors. It is with this project company
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that the public sector authority contracts under PFI for the delivery of an asset and services over the project term.
For most sectors, the project contract requires the project company to confirm that it is a UK resident company, and to undertake that it will remain so for the duration of the contract.
The Treasury does not hold information on any PFI contracts that would indicate that project companies have migrated overseas, however the Treasury and HMRC cannot verify this as the Treasury does not hold the names of the special purpose project company for each PFI project—this information is held by each procuring authority.
UK resident PFI contractors, facilities management services and fund management companies, regardless of their shareholders' registered jurisdiction, are within the charge to UK corporation tax on profits earned within the UK.
PAYE
Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for each employee in pay-as-you-earn, how many items of data his Department will pass to the Department of Work and Pensions in order for that person's universal credit to be calculated in each payment period; and what those items of data will be. [102218]
Mr Gauke [h olding answer 27 March 2012]: Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs will pass to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) up to 49 data items for each employee who is a universal credit claimant. The data items are:
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Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his most recent estimate is of the cost of implementing PAYE real time information. [102220]
Mr Gauke [holding answer 27 March 2012]: As part of the Spending Review 2010, HM Treasury allocated £108 million to HMRC to deliver real time information for PAYE. The latest business case, approved by HM Treasury in October 2011, estimates that the investment for the whole lifecycle of the programme will be £136.5 million, with £114.2 million of those costs falling within the current spending review period.
Child Poverty
Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the measures contained in the 2012 Budget on child poverty in Wales. [102167]
Miss Chloe Smith: HM Treasury has made no assessment of the likely effects of the measures contained in the 2012 Budget on child poverty in the UK or Wales.
The new Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission will provide an assessment of child poverty using a wide range of measures, including income.
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Public Expenditure: Northern Ireland
Ms Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the outcome was of the devolved Finance Ministers' quadrilateral meeting on 5 March 2012; and whether the Government's proposed £18 billion budget allocation to Northern Ireland was discussed at that meeting. [102506]
Danny Alexander: The Finance Ministers' quadrilateral meeting provided an opportunity to discuss matters of mutual interest and underlines the importance of good relations between Her Majesty’s Treasury and the devolved Administrations. Issues specific to a devolved Administration are discussed bilaterally and not at quadrilateral meetings.
Public Sector: Pay
Vernon Coaker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential effects of introducing regional pay on Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement. [102047]
Danny Alexander: Public sector pay in devolved areas is a matter for the devolved Administrations.
At the 2011 autumn statement the Government asked the independent pay review bodies to consider how public sector pay can be made more responsive to local labour markets. The review bodies will report from July.
A separate process is in place for the civil service. This is set out in the Civil Service Pay Guidance for 2012-13 which allows departments to move toward more local, market-facing pay, when they exit the pay freeze.
Until formal proposals have been made by review bodies and civil service departments, it will not be possible to assess the impact on the devolved Administrations.
More local, market-facing public sector pay should support local areas, with the potential to support a greater number of public sector jobs for the same level of spending, and help local businesses become more competitive and expand.
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) men and (b) women in each region will be affected by proposals to introduce regional variations in public sector pay; what assessment he has made of the effect on economic equality between women and men of such measures; and if he will make a statement. [102087]
Danny Alexander: At the 2011 autumn statement the Government asked the independent pay review bodies to consider how public sector pay can be made more responsive to local labour markets. The review bodies will report from July.
A separate process is in place for the civil service. This is set out in the Civil Service Pay Guidance for 2012-13 which allows departments to move toward more local, market-facing pay, when they exit the pay freeze.
Until formal proposals have been made by review bodies and civil service departments, it will not be possible to assess the impact on men and women.
More local, market-facing public sector pay should support local areas, with the potential to support a
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greater number of public sector jobs for the same level of spending, and help local businesses become more competitive and expand.
Paul Murphy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what assessment he has made of the likely effect of changes in public sector pay in disadvantaged regions under his proposals on reform of public sector pay; [102205]
(2) what assessment he has made of the likely effect on economic growth in Wales of his proposals on reform of public sector pay. [102314]
Danny Alexander: Public sector pay in devolved areas is a matter for the devolved Administrations.
At the 2011 autumn statement the Government asked the independent pay review bodies to consider how public sector pay can be made more responsive to local labour markets. The review bodies will report from July.
A separate process is in place for the civil service. This is set out in the Civil Service Pay Guidance for 2012-13 which allows Departments to move toward more local, market-facing pay, when they exit the pay freeze.
Until formal proposals have been made by review bodies, and civil service departments, it will not be possible to assess the impact.
More local, market-facing public sector pay should support local areas, with the potential to support a greater number of public sector jobs for the same level of spending, and help local businesses become more competitive and expand.
Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his policy on regional pay will be based on where someone works or lives. [102324]
Danny Alexander: At the 2011 autumn statement the Government asked the independent pay review bodies to consider how public sector pay can be made more responsive to local labour markets. The review bodies will report from July.
A separate process is in place for the civil service. This is set out in the Civil Service Pay Guidance for 2012-13 which allows Departments to move toward more local, market-facing pay, when they exit the pay freeze.
Until formal proposals have been made by review bodies and civil service departments, it is not possible to give further information.
More local, market-facing public sector pay should support local areas, with the potential to support a greater number of public sector jobs for the same level of spending, and help local businesses become more competitive and expand.
Helen Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect of variation between pay in the private sector and pay in the public sector in (a) Warrington and (b) the North West. [102548]
Danny Alexander: At the 2011 autumn statement the Government asked the independent pay review bodies to consider how public sector pay can be made more responsive to local labour markets. The review bodies will report from July.
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More local, market-facing public sector pay should help local areas, with the potential to support a greater number of public sector jobs for the same level of spending, and help local businesses become more competitive and expand.
At Budget 2012 the Government announced that they have provided evidence to the pay review bodies on the economic case for local pay reform. This sets out the impact of existing variations in public sector pay premia, and is available on the review body website:
www.ome.uk.com
However, until formal proposals have been made by review bodies and civil service Departments, it will not be possible to assess the impact on particular areas.
Public Sector: Pensions
Dan Rogerson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which public sector pension schemes will continue to be uprated using the retail prices index. [102156]
Danny Alexander [holding answer 27 March 2012]: Following the Government's announcement in the June 2010 Budget, public service pension schemes will be uprated using the consumer prices index instead of the retail prices index.
Social Security Benefits
Ann Coffey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of people whose gross earnings are higher than the tax threshold for (a) April 2012 and (b) April 2013 and are claimants of (i) housing benefit and council tax benefit, (ii) housing benefit alone and (iii) council tax benefit alone. [102275]
Mr Gauke [holding answer 27 March 2012]:The latest available information on the gross earnings of recipients of housing and council tax benefit comes from the 2009-10 Family Resources Survey, based on a nationally representative sample of 25,000 private households.
For the purpose of comparing these 2009-10 gross earnings with the April 2012 and April 2013 tax thresholds, the latter have been downrated to 2009-10 equivalent levels. (The April 2012 threshold of £8,105 is downrated to £7,325 and the April 2013 threshold of £9,205 to £8,065.)
Numbers of adults in benefit units in receipt of housing benefit, council tax benefit or both in 2009-10, with gross earnings above these levels is as follows:
| Benefit unit is in receipt of: | ||||
| Earning more than: | HB and CTB | HB only | CTB only | HB or CTB |
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| Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100,000. 2. A benefit unit is defined as a single adult or a married or cohabiting couple and any dependent children. 3. Earnings comprises income from employment or self-employment. 4. HB and CTB are paid at a benefit unit level. Therefore an individual has been assumed to be in receipt of HB or CTB if the individual's benefit unit is in receipt of HB or CTB. 5. The FRS is known to undercount receipt of certain benefits. See http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/frs/ for more information. Source: Family Resources Survey 2009-10. |
Stamp Duty Land Tax: Wales
Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many properties in (a) Ogmore constituency and (b) Wales will be subject to a 15 per cent rate of stamp duty on sale from April 2013. [102245]
Mr Gauke: No such estimate has been made. Data on the movement of residential properties into corporate envelopes are only available at the aggregate UK level.
Valuation Office Agency: Trade Union Officials
Sir Alan Beith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) full-time, (b) part-time and (c) full-time equivalent trade union representatives are employed from the public purse by the Valuation Office Agency in the last year for which figures are available; and what the cost to the public purse was of such representatives. [101035]
Mr Gauke: The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) formally recognises and consults with trade union representatives from the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) and Prospect unions. The VOA has recently agreed a new employee relations agreement (ERA) with both recognised trade unions that specifies the amount of time spent on trade unions activities (facility time) in the VOA. The new ERA significantly reduces the amount of facility time to a total of 10 FTE as of 2012-13 from a figure of 22.82 FTE in 2010-11; the last year for which figures are available. Figures are not yet available for the period 2011-12.
The figures shown are for the year 2010-11:
1 x PCS trade union representative
1 x Prospect trade union representative
269 x PCS trade union representatives
33 x Prospect trade union representatives
The VOA has 15.67 PCS full-time equivalent trade union representatives at a cost of £440,404.
There are 7.15 Prospect full-time equivalent trade union representatives at a cost of £375,975.
The overall cost is £816,379 (based on VOA national average salaries).
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VAT
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with (a) Greggs the Bakers, (b) Cooplands Bakery, (c) Newboulds Butchers and (d) Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union surrounding proposals to charge value added tax on freshly baked savoury products. [102301]
Mr Gauke: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
HMRC are consulting on draft legislation which will give effect to the proposed changes to the VAT treatment of supplies of hot food and catering.
Helen Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish correspondence between Lord Hunt of Wirral and his Department on VAT on newspapers. [102459]
Mr Gauke: There has been no correspondence with Lord Hunt of Wirral regarding VAT on newspapers.
Welfare Tax Credits: Birmingham
Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were in receipt of (a) child tax credit, (b) child benefit and (c) working tax credits in Birmingham, Ladywood constituency in the latest period for which figures are available. [100270]
Mr Gauke: The information requested is given in the following table.
| Thousand | ||||||
| Child and working tax credits | ||||||
| Out-of-work | WTC and CTC | In-work CTC only | WTC only | All | Child benefit | |
The tax credits information has been compiled using the December 2011 National Statistics dataset. The HMRC snapshot publication “Personal Tax Credits: Provisional Statistics—Geographical Statistics” contains data on the number of families in receipt of tax credits and the December 2011 publication can be found at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-dec2011.pdf
Table 4 has this information by Westminster parliamentary constituency.
The child benefit information is published in the HMRC publication “Child Benefit Statistics Geographical analysis at Country, Region, Local Authority and Parliamentary Constituency levels”. Information for August 2011 can be found at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/child_benefit/chb-geog-aug11.pdf
Table 6 has this information by Westminster parliamentary constituency.
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Welfare Tax Credits: Overpayments
Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) wrote off due to an administrative error made by HMRC in the last five years. [99293]
Mr Gauke: The information is not available and could be researched only at disproportionate cost.
Write offs due to an administrative error made by HMRC are included in the overall losses figures which are published in the HMRC annual accounts. These accounts can be found on the HMRC website at:
www.hmrc.gov.uk
Energy and Climate Change
Expenditure: Alcoholic Drinks
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the total spending on wine and other alcoholic beverages was by his Department in the last six months. [103127]
Gregory Barker: The Department does not record expenditure on wine or other alcoholic drinks separately from general refreshments. In order to identify relevant expenditure the Department would need to review each individual expense claim and invoice for refreshments, entertaining, and hospitality which would incur disproportionate costs. Any such expenditure is incurred in accordance with local hospitality policies which are designed to ensure hospitality is moderate, appropriate and properly approved.
Carbon Dioxide: Pipelines
Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the cost per kilometre of new onshore carbon dioxide pipelines. [103178]
Gregory Barker: The Department has not made a general estimate of the cost per kilometre of constructing a new onshore carbon dioxide pipeline. The cost will be dependent on a number of factors, including the exact specifications of the pipeline, the material selected, the associated labour costs of construction and the terrain the pipeline will pass through.
Carbon Sequestration
Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what information his Department holds on how many prospective (a) gas and (b) coal carbon capture and storage projects there are worldwide. [102998]
Charles Hendry: The Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute publishes an annual report detailing progress made on prospective projects. The 2011 status report can be found at:
http://www.globalccsinstitute.com/publications/global-status-ccs-2011
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Civil Servants: Code of Practice
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many investigations into breaches by civil servants of the Civil Service Code of Conduct occurred in his Department in each month from May 2010 to March 2012. [103143]
Gregory Barker: There have been no investigations into breaches of the Civil Service Code of Conduct in the Department of Energy and Climate Change over the period from May 2010 to March 2012.
Coal-fired Power Stations
Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether any coal power station will be generating in the UK after 2023. [103001]
Charles Hendry: Around 21GW of coal plant in the UK have “not opted” out of the large combustion plant directive, and are therefore able to remain in operation after 2015. These plant will need to comply with the requirements of the industrial emissions directive.
Which option they choose under the directive, and therefore whether they will remain in operation past 2023, is a commercial matter for individual operators.
Some estimates of future coal generation capacity, and the assumptions underlying these estimates, can be found in the following:
DECC's Updated Emissions Projections
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/about/ec_social_res/analytic_projs/en_emis_projs/en_emis_projs.aspx
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/tackling/carbon_plan/carbon_plan.aspx
Coal: Imports
Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of the coal used in the UK was imported in the latest period for which figures are available. [102999]
Charles Hendry: The following table shows the percentage of imported coal used in the UK in each year from 2000 until 2011.
| Net imports(thousand tonnes) | Total supply (thousand tonnes) | Import dependency (1 ) (%) | |
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| (1)Net imports divided by total supply, multiplied by 100. This is consistent with the EU definition. (2) Between 2000 and 2010 the components of the import dependency percentages can be found in Table 2.7, Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics 2011. (3) The provisional 2011 statistics that have been provided are sourced from Table 2.1 of the quarterly statistical release, Energy Trends March 2012, which was published at 9.30 am on 29 March 2012. The statistics used to compile this table can be found on the DECC website: http://decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/source/coal/coal.aspx | |||
Community Energy Saving Programme
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what meetings Ministers in his Department have had with (a) Atlantic, (b) EDF Energy, (c) British Gas, (d) Swalec, (e) E.ON, (f) Npower, (g) Scottish Hydro, (h) Scottish Power, (i) Southern Electric and (j) SSE to discuss progress in meeting their obligations under the community energy saving programme and carbon emission reduction target. [102914]
Gregory Barker: I last met with representatives of EDF, British Gas, E.ON, npower, SSE and Scottish Power to discuss the progress in meeting the carbon emission reduction target (CERT) and Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) obligations on 1 February 2012.
Atlantic, Scottish Hydro and Swalec are all owned by SSE.
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department has received any representations to extend the deadline for (a) the community energy saving programme and (b) the carbon emission reduction target. [102956]
Gregory Barker: The Government have received representations from some obligated energy companies, and representative bodies, to extend the 31 December 2012 deadline for achieving both the Carbon Emission Reduction Target (CERT) and Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP).
Electricity Generation
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the generation capacity is of private wire networks in the UK; and how many such generators operate on private wire networks. [102090]
Charles Hendry: DECC does not hold figures for generation over private wires.
Martin Caton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether secondees to his Department were involved in the preparation of the Final Overarching Energy National Policy Statement (EN-1) June 2011, Part 3: Section 3.3, subsections (a) The need for more electricity capacity to support an
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increased supply from renewables and
(b)
Future increases in electricity demand and the urgency of the need for new electricity capacity. [102555]
Charles Hendry: No secondees were involved in the preparation of the Final Overarching Energy National Policy Statement EN-1, Part 3, section 3.3 on the need for electricity generation capacity. Part 3 was drafted by DECC officials in the light of responses to the consultation on the revised draft NPSs.
Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether secondees to his Department were involved in the preparation of the first bullet point, entitled The demand for electricity is likely to rise, on page six of the 2011 White Paper, Planning our Electric Future. [102556]
Charles Hendry: The drafting of 'Planning our electric future: a White Paper for secure, affordable and low-carbon electricity' (CM 8099) was led by civil servants. Secondees have, however, assisted with the preparation of proposals on electricity market reform and I refer the hon. Member to the written answer given on 24 October 2011, Official Report, column 76W, to the hon. Member for Southampton, Test (Dr Whitehead).
Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the effect of drought conditions on the generation of electricity. [103097]
Charles Hendry: Last year the Association of Electricity Producers (AEP) conducted a review that looked at the impact of a nationwide drought, considering in particular stations with abstraction licence conditions.
The AEP assessment indicated that the amount of generating capacity potentially impacted in the case of a nationwide drought is significant but relatively low compared with total generating capacity.
In March this year the Environment Agency (EA) published a report: "Drought prospects for spring and summer 2012". The EA supports the AEP's assessment, stating:
“..individual electricity generators may be impacted where they rely on abstracting cooling water in affected areas however this is unlikely to affect electricity supply as this may be met by an alternative supplier and balanced nationally...”.
DECC continues to work closely with industry and other Government Departments to track and ensure energy resilience in this area.
Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the probable installed capacity of (a) unabated gas-fired electricity generation and (b) unabated coal-fired electricity generation that there will be in the UK electricity system in 2025. [103177]
Charles Hendry: It is difficult to accurately predict the amount of installed capacity for unabated coal and gas in 2025, as (provided they continue to comply with environmental legislation) the decision to retire old plants, and build new ones, is a commercial matter for individual plant operators.
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The Carbon Plan, which was published on 1 December 2011, sets out a range of scenarios to highlight the possibilities and the challenges we will face in decarbonising the economy between now and 2050, using currently available knowledge. At this stage, it is not possible to predict with certainty the most cost-effective route to decarbonisation of the power sector and the scenarios are not intended to present a definitive assessment of a particular technology.
Some estimates of future installed capacity, and the assumptions underlying these estimates, can be found in the following:
DECC's Updated Emissions Projections
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/about/ec_social_res/analytic_projs/en_emis_projs/en_emis_projs.aspx
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/tackling/carbon_plan/carbon_plan.aspx
Electricity: Meters
Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the timetable is for developing and carrying out the consumer engagement strategy under the smart metering implementation programme; and if he will make a statement. [101655]
Charles Hendry: The Government recently published a consultation on the consumer engagement strategy for the smart meter roll-out.
The consultation sets out the Government's thinking on the objectives, activities and delivery approach for central consumer engagement. A key proposal is for energy suppliers to establish and fund a central delivery body for smart meter consumer engagement. Under a regulated approach, we envisage that the body would be set up no later than the first half of 2013 and publish its first delivery plans in the first quarter of 2014, ensuring that a comprehensive consumer engagement approach is in place before the start of mass roll-out later in 2014. Earlier implementation could be possible if suppliers are able to establish suitable arrangements without regulation.
The Government will continue to work with stakeholders during Foundation Stage (which began in April 2011 and will continue until mass roll-out begins in 2014) to promote positive smart metering case studies through the media, counter misinformation and coordinate consistent messages.
Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the proposed budget is for the consumer engagement strategy under the smart metering implementation programme. [101656]
Charles Hendry: The Government recently published a consultation on the consumer engagement strategy for the smart meter roll-out.
The consultation sets out the Government's thinking on the objectives, activities and delivery approach for central consumer engagement. A key proposal is for energy suppliers to establish and fund a central delivery body to deliver objectives relating to consumer engagement for smart meters set out by the Government. The Government's current view is that the funding levels
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would not be prescribed for the delivery body; instead it would be for suppliers to decide on the level of funding necessary to achieve its objectives.
Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the level of consumer awareness and support for smart metering. [101657]
Charles Hendry: The Government are carrying out qualitative and quantitative research on consumer attitudes to smart metering, the results of which will be published during summer 2012. We expect to repeat some of this research at six monthly intervals.
In addition, we are aware of a number of external assessments of awareness of, and support for, smart metering. The findings vary, but typically the assessments suggest that awareness is fairly low, whereas support for smart metering among those who are aware is higher.
Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what alternatives he considered to smart metering; and if he will make a statement. [102710]
Charles Hendry: The business case for smart metering has been developed by the previous and current Governments over the last four years, supported by extensive analysis, consultation and detailed discussions with stakeholders. This included consideration of an alternative option of rolling out consumer displays and provision of historical information on energy bills.
The Coalition programme for government included a commitment to roll out smart meters. In addition to providing consumers with greater visibility of, and control over, their energy use, smart meters will help energy suppliers provide improved customer services and deliver significant cost savings to industry, which will ultimately benefit consumers. In addition, it will help to facilitate the development of a smart grid and the uptake of electric vehicles and microgeneration. The impact assessment indicates that the roll out of smart meters will deliver more than £7 billion of benefits to the country.
Mr Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his policy is on the period for which e-mails sent and received by (a) Ministers, (b) officials, and (c) special advisers in his Department are retained; and whether such e-mails are recoverable from the IT systems in his Department after that period. [102946]
Gregory Barker: E-mails sent or received on departmental IT systems that form part of the official record for accountability, legal or business purposes, are saved into the corporate electronic records management system. These are reviewed after eight years when they are either destroyed, retained if there is an ongoing need and re-assessed at a future date, or identified for transfer to The National Archives when appropriate. Ephemeral e-mails which are not part of the official record are automatically deleted after 12 months.
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Back-up copies of DECC's IT systems are kept for three months for business continuity purposes.
Energy Supply
Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department is taking to support the energy sector and its domestic supply chain. [101990]
Charles Hendry: The building of a vibrant green economy and the promotion of the domestic energy supply chain are top priorities for this Government. DECC's work to strengthen the energy supply chain in the UK aims to support the sector in ensuring there is capacity in place to deliver required investment, and to deliver on DECC's objectives, safe and secure energy on the way to a low carbon future and incentivising low carbon investment and deployment. DECC also works to ensure that as far as possible work to achieve these objectives supports UK jobs and growth.
Last August, DECC, BIS and DEFRA jointly published ‘Enabling the Transition to a Green Economy’. This sets out the policies we are using to support the transition to a green economy and outlines the range of levers we are using to drive green growth.
Energy: Billing
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 21 March 2012, Official Report, column 758W, on energy: billing, when the data for the average level of debt for domestic customers for 2011 will be published. [102930]
Charles Hendry: Ofgem expect to publish its social obligations annual report for 2011, which will include this information, before the end of August.
Energy: Prices
Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the merits of collective purchasing in the energy market. [102483]
Charles Hendry: Collective purchasing and switching has the potential to help consumers get a fair deal on their energy bills.
DECC has been looking at barriers to the development of collective purchasing schemes with industry representatives, consumer groups and other interested parties.
Environmental Protection: Taxation
Mrs Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 21 March 2012, Official Report, column 761W, on environmental protection: taxation, what estimate he has made of the likely effect of his policies on (a) medium and (b) large industrial energy bills. [102344]
Charles Hendry:
On 23 November 2011, alongside the Annual Energy Statement, DECC published an assessment of the impact of climate change and energy
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polices on energy prices and bills for an average household, medium-sized business user and large, energy-intensive user in 2011, 2020 and 2030. This is available online at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/meeting_energy/aes/impacts/impacts.aspx
The headline results for medium-sized business users and large energy intensive users are presented in Table 1. These results do not include the impact of the package of measures for energy intensive industries announced in the Chancellor's 2011 Autumn Statement. On 12 March, the Government launched a call for evidence on the impact of electricity costs on energy intensive industries in the UK to inform implementation of this package of measures, available online at:
http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/business-sectors/low-carbon-business-opportunities/energy-intensive-industries
| Table 1: Estimated impact of energy and climate change policies on average energy (gas plus electricity) bills compared with bills in the absence of policies | |||
| % | |||
| 2011 | 2020 | 2030 | |
| (1) A medium-sized business user is defined by an annual consumption of between 2,778 and 27,777 MWh of gas and between 2,000 and 19,999 MWh of electricity. The midpoints of these ranges have been used. (2) Energy intensive users are defined as those in sectors covered by Climate Change Agreements. The energy bills for these users are based on a range of three different mixes of gas and electricity consumption (80% gas and 20% of electricity, 50% of each and 20% gas and 80% electricity). The range of results also encompasses the extent to which users may source electricity from on-site generation which would not be subject to the support costs of policies such as the RO, EMR and FITs. | |||
Mrs Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 21 March 2012, Official Report, column 761W, on environmental protection: taxation, how much an average household would save each year by 2020 if the Energy Company Obligation, EU Emission Trading Scheme, Carbon Floor Price, Renewables Obligation, Green Deal and feed-in-tariffs were removed and electricity market reform discontinued. [102672]
Gregory Barker: DECC estimates that energy and climate change policies will lead to average household energy bills that are 7% lower in 2020 than they would be if these policies were never introduced. This net saving includes the impact of the energy company obligation, EU emission trading system, carbon price floor, renewables obligation (RO), Green Deal, feed-in tariffs (FITs) and electricity market reform (EMR) as well as other policies.(1) A breakdown of this net impact by policy is available in Annex F at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/meeting_energy/aes/impacts/impacts.aspx
It is important to take into consideration that even if the RO and FITs were discontinued today, the RO costs relating to large-scale renewable electricity generating capacity already built have been committed and will therefore still be incurred in 2020 and small-scale low-carbon electricity installations eligible for FITs and already installed would also still receive payments in 2020. As
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such we would not be saving the full costs of these policies reported in Annex F of the published document.
Around a fifth of the UK's existing generation capacity will need replacing by 2020 as many nuclear and coal plants reach the end of their lives. Policies such as the EMR are designed to encourage the investment in electricity plants needed to replace these and avoid the risk of costly blackouts at least cost to consumers. Moreover, without these policies the UK will become more dependent on imported energy, more exposed to volatility in international fossil fuel prices and households, particularly the most vulnerable, will not benefit from improved energy efficiency of their homes. Furthermore, we would not meet our statutory emissions reduction targets and EU renewable energy targets if these policies were discontinued.
(1) Other policies include smart meters, the carbon emission reduction target, the energy efficiency commitments, the Community Energy Saving programme, Better Billing, the warm home discount and products policy.
EU Emissions Trading Scheme
Kwasi Kwarteng: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions his Department has had with its EU counterparts on the views of (a) China and (b) other non-EU countries on the EU emissions trading system and the decision to include international aviation in the scheme. [102650]
Gregory Barker: International aviation has been included in the EU ETS from 1 January 2012 as an effect of the directive 2008/101/EC, which was approved by co-decision on 19 November 2008 with strong support from the EU Parliament and Council.
We remain fully committed to the inclusion of aviation in the EU ETS and continue to support the successful implementation of the system. We are working closely with other member states and with the Commission to understand the concerns raised by non-EU countries.
A global measure remains our preferred option so we continue to press for an ambitious international agreement in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). This position is consistent with Article 25a of the ETS Directive which makes provision for amendment to the legislation following an international agreement.
Fuel: Prices
Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the number of people in (a) the UK and (b) Northern Ireland who spent more than 10% of their income on fuel in the last year. [102753]
Gregory Barker: Measurement of fuel poverty is based on modelled rather than actual spend and is reported on at household (rather than individual) level. In 2009, the latest year for which data are available, the number of households that were modelled to need to spend more than 10% of their income on domestic fuel to stay adequately warm was estimated to be:
(a) 5.5 million in the UK;
(b) 302,000 in Northern Ireland.
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The Department does not compile figures on the number of households that actually spend more than 10% of their income on fuel. Fuel poverty among the countries of the UK is measured by each devolved office. Latest figures for 2010 for the UK and England will be published on 17 May.
Gas and Electricity Markets Authority
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what investigations Ofgem is currently undertaking. [102926]
Charles Hendry: The information requested is a matter for Ofgem. The chief executive of Ofgem will write to the right hon. Member directly, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Gas-fired Power Stations
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the electricity generation capacity from gas-fired power stations it expects to become operational in each year from 2012 to 2020. [102913]
Charles Hendry: DECC’s latest ‘central’ updated emissions projections (UEP) scenario, published on 13 October 2011, shows the following new build of gas generation between 2012 and 2020:
| New build (GW) | Cumulative new build (GW) | |
The data show net gas generation capacity (i.e. gross generation capacity less the plant’s own use), only covers new build by major power producers, and do not include additional policies to meet the 4th carbon budget (2023-27) as set out in the Carbon plan published on 1 December 2011.
The UEP scenario above reflects a gradual introduction of new capacity currently in construction. This reflects uncertainty about the exact completion dates for each generating unit.
This scenario is based on a set of assumptions on fossil fuel and carbon prices and costs. They do not reflect a desired or preferred outcome for Government.
Cumulative new capacity from major power producers can be found in annex K of DECC’s updated emissions projections available at:
http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/about/ec_social_res/analytic_projs/en_emis_projs/en_emis_projs.aspx
Please note that annex K shows cumulative capacity from 2011, whereas the cumulative figures above are from 2012.
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Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate he has made of the number of gas-fired power stations for which (a) there is planning consent and (b) planning permission is being sought; and what the likely capacity of electricity which would be generated by power stations in each such category. [102957]
Charles Hendry: Since 1 January 2007, 18 consents for new gas-fired electricity generating stations or extensions to existing gas-fired stations have been granted under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 ("S36") in England and Wales. The total capacity comprised in those consents is 20,360 MW. In addition, the Scottish Government granted consent for a 1,000 MW gas-fired generating station in October 2011.
There are currently two live applications for consent under S36 for gas-fired generating stations in England and Wales. The total capacity for those proposed stations is 2,155 MW. There are no live applications for consent for gas-fired power stations in Scotland.
Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department has made any estimate of the global installed capacity of gas-fired electricity generation in 2010 and the likely level of such capacity in (a) 2020 and (b) 2030. [103000]
Charles Hendry: The following table shows global installed capacity for gas-fired electricity generation for 2009 (the latest year for which actual data are available) as well as projected values for 2020 and 2030 under three different scenarios. All of these data have been sourced from the IEA's ‘World Energy Outlook 2011’ publication.
| New Policies Scenario global capacity (GW) | Current Policies Scenario global capacity (GW) | 450 Scenario global capacity (GW) | |
The central scenario is the New Policies Scenario, in which recent Government policy commitments are assumed to be implemented in a cautious manner even if they are not yet backed up by firm measures. The Current Policies Scenario assumes no new policies are added to those in place as of mid-2011. The 450 Scenario works back from the international goal of limiting the long-term increase in the global mean temperature to two degrees Celsius (2°C) above pre-industrial levels, in order to trace a plausible pathway to that goal.
Gas-fired Power Stations: Carbon Emissions
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has to review the level of the Emissions Performance Standard in line with the commercial and technical viability of carbon capture and storage for new gas plants. [102303]
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Charles Hendry: The level of Emissions Performance Standard for future plant will be reviewed in line with the decarbonisation reports required under section 10 of the Energy Act 2010.
Gas-fired Power Stations: Carbon Sequestration
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress he has made on establishing carbon capture and storage demonstration projects for new gas plants. [102339]
Charles Hendry: The new CCS competition, ‘the CCS Commercialisation Programme’, which was launched on 3 April, is open to both coal and gas projects. Further details are available on the DECC website at:
www.decc.gov.uk/occs
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his policy is on requiring new gas plants to be built ready for carbon capture. [102343]
Charles Hendry: All new combustion power stations at or over 300 MWe and of a type covered by the large combustion plant directive, including gas, will only be consented if they are carbon capture ready (CCR).
Green Deal Scheme
Dr Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has to ensure that clear and reliable information is available to those investing in the Green Deal and delivering programmes through the Energy Company Obligation. [102285]
Gregory Barker: Officials are engaging collaboratively with industry stakeholders to provide guidance on how investors and delivery agents can enter the market. DECC are developing data processes that investors will be able to use to determine what role they could play.
The Department for Communities and Local Government will be opening up access to the EPC register from April to authorised participants. This will allow Green Deal providers and Energy Company Obligation operators to target properties that can benefit from their services.
We are working with the energy companies and financiers to publish historic aggregated electricity payment performance data. This will aid Green Deal providers and financiers to assess the risk of default in the Green Deal in the absence of a Green Deal track record, given that Green Deal repayments will be collected via electricity bills.
Insulation: Housing
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the likelihood of loft and cavity wall insulation meeting the golden rule when any ancillary costs are factored in. [102584]
Gregory Barker:
Expected savings from insulation will vary depending on each specific household or building, while costs will also vary depending on what costs a
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Green Deal provider chooses to include, subject to our regulations, and what they charge for the various elements. Some properties will be more straightforward to insulate than others, some customers will include insulation as part of other renovations thereby minimising costs, and some Green Deal providers may make savings from operating at scale within an area; we are not mandating costs or what must be included so this is open to Green Deal providers to determine.
As an example, in a typical three-bed semi where cavity wall insulation and loft top-up is being carried out at a cost of £800, if we assume additional ancillary costs of £200, and a 7.5% interest rate, the payback period would be 10 years with savings continuing to be enjoyed by the customer for the ongoing lifetime of the measures.
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will publish updated numbers of (a) hard and (b) easy to treat cavities in the impact assessment to be published alongside the Government response to the Green Deal and energy company obligation consultation. [102585]
Gregory Barker: Yes, DECC will publish revised assumptions on the number of easy and hard to treat cavity walls not yet insulated in the final Green Deal and energy company obligation impact assessment.
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the number of remaining (a) hard and (b) easy to treat domestic wall cavities. [102587]
Gregory Barker: Estimates of the number of remaining hard and easy to treat cavity wall homes in Great Britain were published by DECC in the Carbon Plan. It was estimated that at the start of July 2011 there were 7.5 million existing uninsulated cavity walls remaining. Of these, 2.6 million were considered easy to treat and 4.9 million hard to treat.
Estimates for April 2012 will be published at 9.30 am on 28 June 2012 as part of the quarterly statistical release, Energy Trends.
Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the potential ancillary costs that the Green Deal will add to the cost of basic loft and cavity wall insulation. [102588]
Gregory Barker: DECC has sought views from industry representatives on the potential ancillary costs associated with the installation of certain energy efficiency measures, including solid wall insulation. The assumptions will be included in the final impact assessment for the Green Deal and energy company obligation.
Intellectual Property
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department has a role in intellectual property policy development. [101250]
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Gregory Barker [holding answer 27 March 2012]: Policy relating to intellectual policy, as a stand-alone matter, is for BIS and the Intellectual Property Office, which is an executive agency of BIS. DECC clearly has an interest in ensuring that the intellectual policy is developed in a way that supports innovation in the energy and climate change fields. We would therefore work with BIS on this area, as would other Departments. Any work with BIS on this area would normally be led by DECC's procurement or legal areas. We have consulted them and they are not aware of any DECC work in the intellectual property policy development area, at this time.
Legal Costs
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 23 January 2012, Official Report, column 15W, on HomeSun Holdings, what the final legal costs incurred by his Department were in the case of HomeSun Holdings Ltd v . Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change. [102609]
Gregory Barker: The total legal costs to DECC are not yet known. The costs incurred by DECC to date are approximately £83,870. The costs of HomeSun and the other respondents have not yet been assessed.
Nuclear Power Stations
Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether secondees to his Department were involved in the preparation of the subsection of the Final National Policy Statement on Nuclear Power EN-6, June 2011, Volume 1, Part 2, entitled Policy on the need for new nuclear power stations and the benefits of early deployment. [102553]
Charles Hendry: No secondees were involved in the preparation of the subsection of the National Policy Statement on Nuclear Power published in June 2011, Volume 1, Part 2, entitled "Policy on the need for new nuclear power stations and the benefits of early deployment". The text was drafted by DECC officials in the light of responses to the consultation on the revised draft NPSs.
Oil: Prices
Mr Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions his Department has had (a) at EU level, (b) with the US and (c) with OPEC countries on releasing strategic oil reserves in order to reduce oil prices. [102752]
Charles Hendry: The Department of Energy and Climate Change routinely discusses a range of oil market issues with representatives of numerous countries, including the EU, US and some OPEC members. The UK, along with the International Energy Agency, and IEA member countries, will continue to monitor oil market developments carefully, but no decision has been taken to release oil stocks. As IEA Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven recently stated, “the IEA was created to respond to serious physical supply disruptions, and [we] remain ready to act if market conditions so warrant”.
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Renewable Energy
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many staff working on Electricity Market Reform (EMR) in his Department have expertise in community-scale renewable energy; and if he will give the staff in his Department working on EMR a remit to ensure that new arrangements encourage community-owned renewable energy schemes. [102091]
Charles Hendry: Community-scale renewable energy forms a key part of the Department's large programmes. There are 71.5 staff based in the Office for Renewable Energy Deployment, and an additional team working on the renewable heat incentive. Within these wider programmes, a core team of four people focuses on community-scale renewable energy, with additional assistance from specialists on science and engineering, economics and social research.
In developing the electricity market reform proposals we are giving consideration to all scales of generation. In addition to drawing on the internal expertise outlined above, we are working with the Distributed Energy Contact Group to understand their views of the new arrangements, and how these can support community-scale schemes.
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer of 8 March 2012, Official Report, column 1002, on low-carbon technologies, if he will publish a list of the installed renewable electricity generation he expects to become operational in 2012. [102932]
Gregory Barker: DECC's Restats database holds data on the status of large-scale renewable electricity generation projects, including those under construction. The intended operational date is not captured so it is not possible to tell which projects will become operational in 2012. However, the date on which generation commenced is recorded.
A progress datasheet for February 2012 (the latest data available) can be accessed at:
https://restats.decc.gov.uk/app/reporting/decc/datasheet
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer of 8 March 2012, Official Report, column 997, on onshore wind energy, what assessment his Department has made of the electricity generation capacity for which (a) there is planning consent and (b) planning permission is being sought for (i) offshore wind, (ii) tidal sources, (iii) small-scale hydro-sources, (iv) large-scale hydro-sources, (v) landfill gas, (vi) sewage sludge, (vii) municipal solid waste combustion, (viii) animal biomass and (ix) plant biomass. [102937]
Charles Hendry: DECC's Restats database holds data on the status of large-scale renewable electricity generation projects, including those that have received planning consent or are awaiting a planning decision. A progress datasheet for February 2012 (the latest data available) can be accessed at
https://restats.decc.gov.uk/app/reporting/decc/datasheet
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A summary of the data is set out in the following table:
| Potential generation capacity of specified renewable electricity generation technologies | ||
| MW | ||
| Planning consent granted | In planning | |
| (1) Separate data not available for tidal power. (2) See following paragraph. (3) Separate data not available for animal and plant biomass Source: Restats progress datasheet, February 2012 https://restats.decc.gov.uk/app/reporting/decc/datasheet | ||
DECC does not maintain aggregated data on small-scale hydro projects. However, individual projects are listed in the Restats monthly planning database extract available from
https://restats.decc.gov.uk/cms/planning-database-reports/