Mr. Gareth R. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to implement the proposals set out in February in the Department of Trade and Industry's 'Responses to Consultations and Final Proposals' document concerning 'Exemptions from the Requirement for a Licence to Generate, Distribute or Supply Electricity'. [3739]
§ Mr. WilsonThe Government plan that an Order implementing these proposals should be made in the next few weeks.
§ Mr. Alan SimpsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what assessment she has made of the performance of(a) electricity and (b) gas suppliers in relation to door step selling; [4263]
1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 Solar Active (including PV) 0.1 0.3 0.1 0.9 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.9 1.7 1.7 Passive 2.8 2.6 2.9 2.2 1.6 1.5 1.3 0.5 0.1 0.0 Wave 0.6 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.5 Tidal 2.4 2.1 0.7 0.3 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Geo Thermal 2.0 1.5 1.4 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Wind Onshore 8.1 10.6 9.0 4.0 4.2 2.9 1.6 1.3 1.1 0.9 Offshore 0.3 0.1 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.4 Biomass 1.5 2.4 3.0 3.4 3.2 2.6 1.9 1.8 2.2 1.8 Fuel Cells 0.4 0.5 1.1 1.3 1.6 1.2 1.2 1.6 1.6 1.8 Nuclear1 93.6 85.5 76.9 28.4 21.7 21.4 17.6 14.2 16.8 16.8 Clean Coal 7.4 6.8 12.0 8.0 7.8 6.9 3.1 2.9 2.5 4.3 Combined Heat and Power 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.7 1.0 1.3 1.9 2.5 1 Of DTI's total spend on nuclear R&D given in the table, about £15 million annually is fusion research; there is also some additional expenditure in support of Meteorological Office emergency response arrangements. Expenditure by public sector bodies is set out in their annual reports and accounts, and could not be provided in the manner requested without disproportionate cost Notes:
1. Separate research programmes do not yet exist for hydrogen conversion technologies or combined-cycle gas
2. The table sets out identified Government spend and excludes, for example, spending by Research Councils, which could not be separated in the manner requested without disproportionate cost
3. DEFRA has lead responsibility within Government for combined heat and power. Figures include funds from the Energy Efficiency Best Practice Programme and from the Energy Savings Trust
4. DTI's sustainable energy R&D programme also includes support for activities which are not technology specific, for example, export commercialisation, marketing and international activities
584W(2) if she will monitor and publish the names of companies against which complaints have been received in relation to the selling of gas and electricity supplies to domestic consumers. [4264]
§ Mr. WilsonThe Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (OFGEM) is responsible for monitoring the performance of gas and electricity suppliers in all areas of marketing and sales, including doorstep selling. Where necessary it will take formal action against individual suppliers. OFGEM is publishes details of complaints by domestic consumers about the direct selling practices of individual suppliers.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the annual expenditure has been on research, demonstration and development, since 1991, on(a) active solar power, (b) passive solar power, (c) wave power, (d) tidal power, (e) geothermal powers, (f) onshore wind powers, (g) offshore wind powers, (h) biomass energy, (i) hydrogen conversion technologies, (j) fuel cells, (k) nuclear fission, (l) nuclear fusion, (m) clean coal. (n) combined heat and power and (o) combined-cycle gas by (i) his Department and (ii) relevant publicly owned utilities; and what annual payments have been made in each year since 1991 to (A) Euratom, (B) the European Commission's joint research centres and (C) the International Atomic Energy Agency. [3954]
§ Mr. WilsonAvailable information is set out in the tables. The Government have allocated some £260 million over the next three years to support renewable energy, including an expanded research and development programme. This is an addition to the new Renewables Obligation and exemption for renewables electricity from the Climate Change Levy.
585W
Payment appropriations from EC Budget to Euratom and to the European Commission's joint research centre 1991–2000 Million euros Year JRC Euratom 1991 261 — 1992 257 — 1993 257 — 1994 269 — 1995 240 156 1996 234 235 1997 232 261 1998 236 176 1999 243 426 2000 261 173 Notes:
1. Figures shown are for total EC budget payments to Euratom and to the European Commission's Joint Research Centre.
2. In 2000, the UK contributed around 15 per cent. after abatement, of the total EC payments.
3. EC budget payments to Euratom began in 1995.
UK payments to the International Atomic Energy Agency from 1995–2001 Year £ 1995 Regular Budget Subscription 8,048,512 Technical Co-operation Fund 1,870,134 1996 Regular Budget Subscription 9,061,670 Technical Co-operation Fund 2,205,414 1997 Regular Budget Subscription 7,670,799 Technical Co-operation Fund 2,249,969 1998 Regular Budget Subscription 5,950,148 Technical Co-operation Fund 2,516,139 1999 Regular Budget Subscription 6,143,449 Technical Co-operation Fund 2,267,527 2000 Regular Budget Subscription 6,291,197 Technical Co-operation Fund 2,386,354 2001 Regular Budget Subscription 6,561,613 Technical Co-operation fund 2,577,181 Note:
Comparable figures for years before 1995 are unavailable.
§ Mr. Alan SimpsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what assessment she has made of the adequacy of procedures adopted by the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority, and its predecessor bodies, for the purposes of commissioning consultancy contracts related to the joint programme of work on the changes to the electricity market, overseen by the joint DTI/OFFER/OFGEM steering committee; [4261]
(2) what the formal arrangements have been for the control of costs of implementing the changes to the electricity trading arrangements overseen by the joint committee of the DTI and OFGEM since October 1998; [4259]
586W(3) which consultants were used to (a) develop and (b) implement the work overseen by the joint DTI/OFGEM committee introducing changes to the electricity market; [4262]
(4) what estimates the DTI has made in its regulatory impact assessment of the costs of developing and implementing the joint programme of work undertaken by his Department and OFGEM and its predecessor bodies for (a) the companies involved, (b) OFFER and (c) OFGEM in relation to electricity trading. [4260]
§ Mr. WilsonI have, of course, drawn my hon. Friend's questions to the attention of the Chairman of the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority.
§ Mr. WeirTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the value was of Government investment and subsidy for(a) the production of nuclear power, (b) development, planning and construction of nuclear power stations, (c) production of wind, wave, solar and other renewable energy sources and (d) development, planning and construction of wind, wave, solar and other renewable power stations in each year since 1997; and what her estimates are for each year until 2005–06. [3933]
§ Mr. Wilson[holding answer 17 July 2001]: No Government investment or subsidy has been paid in the years since 1997 toward the production of nuclear power or to the development, planning or construction of nuclear power stations. There is no current expectation that there will be any in the period to 2005–06.
Payments for production and development of power from renewable sources under the Non Fossil Fuel Obligation (England and Wales), the Scottish Renewables Order and the Non Fossil Fuel Obligation (Northern Ireland) for each year from 1997–98 are shown in the table. The cost of these payments is met by the electricity consumer.
£ Year England and Wales Scotland Northern Ireland 1997–98 115.9 4.8 6.8 1998–99 113.7 6.6 7.9 1999–2000 41.9 7.7 8.2 2000–01 52.1 9.9 7.8 2001–021 111.0 10.0 9.1 1 Estimate Support for renewable energy in years from 2002–03 will depend upon the detailed terms of the Renewables Obligation, on which I will be consulting shortly.
In addition to support to be provided under the Renewables Obligation, the Government have pledged over £260 million over the next three years in direct support for the production and development of renewable energy. Renewables will also be helped indirectly through exemption from the Climate Change Levy.
§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will assess trends in energy provision supplied on a local level. [5432]
§ Mr. WilsonInformation on energy supply and consumption within local areas is not currently available centrally.
587WInformation on energy which is produced and used within the same location, such as electricity generated and used on site and heat generated on site from a local source such as renewables, is available in the Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics. The Digest for 2001 will be published on 26 July 2001 and a copy will be placed in the Library of the House.
The Digest for 2001 will show that electricity generated by companies other than major power producers and not transferred to the public distribution system increased at a rate of 9 per cent. a year between 1996 and 2000.