Topical Questions 2026-07-07

Question

If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities. The Secretary of State's department is handling renewable power, nuclear programmes, and warm homes initiative.

Question

The cost of heating oil remains a major concern for many residents in the Borders, particularly as families plan for autumn and winter. The Government promised to cut energy bills by £300 but since they took office, bills have risen by £300. What more will the Government do to support households?

Question

The Secretary of State will know that there is no legal duty for energy developers to co-ordinate when they are developing in the same area or place, or at the same time. In Suffolk Coastal, Europe's largest energy project is being developed right now, alongside four other nationally significant energy infrastructure projects. Will the Government consider giving Ofgem more power to enforce co-ordination?

Question

According to the press, the Secretary of State is applying for a new job, which means that he must be in need of references. Who will he ask first: the trade unions, who are calling for him to be sacked; the public, who have faced a £300 rise in their energy bills on his watch; or the oil and gas workers, who roundly rejected him at the recent by-election in Aberdeen?

Question

Let us look at the facts: bills went down £500 under me, but they have gone up £300 under him. The Secretary of State said that he has raked in investment, but that is because he has promised that consumers will pay sky-high prices to wind developers for decades to come. He is decimating British industry. Great British Energy is a complete flop. Is not the truth that the only reason he wants an out from this job is so that someone else has to clean up the mess that he is leaving behind?

Question

It was a pleasure to welcome the Minister for Energy to Bellshill for the opening of the new RES maintenance facility last week. RES' partnership with Scottish Power will support 15 windfarm sites, ensuring clean power for more than 400,000 homes. Does my hon. Friend agree that partnerships like that are important for our energy security?

Question

When it comes to local and community energy, we welcome the investment by Great British Energy, and the local power plan. However, the Liberal Democrats pushed to get community energy in the Great British Energy Act 2025, because we knew that there were hurdles beyond investment, as pointed out by my hon. Friend the Member for Bath (Wera Hobhouse), who is on the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee. We have been waiting for over a year to hear about this. The Minister has said that the Government are creating the much-awaited energy independence Bill, which will include changes to local energy trading, so that there is a right to sell supply locally.

Question

I am concerned about what the Government are doing in the short term to bring down energy bills while the £15 billion warm homes plan is being set up.

Question

I am asking whether the Secretary of State will consult the devolved regions on the roll-out of small modular reactors, so that all the consumer and job opportunity benefits can be shared right across the whole United Kingdom?

Question

Year 7 students from Ranelagh school in Bracknell have written to me as part of the Creative for Climate Justice Project, sharing some incredible artwork and poetry. They note that the impacts of climate change are already visible and call on us to act now to avoid irreversible damage. Does my hon. Friend agree? Will she assure those students that the Government heed their call for action?

Question

The Government promised during the election to cut bills by £300; in fact, they have gone up by £300. With that level of financial acumen, the Secretary of State will fit right in at the Treasury, but my constituents and local businesses want their bills cut now, not at some nebulous point in the future. When he gets to the Treasury, will he remove taxes on our energy industry so that bills actually come down?

Question

Third-party brokers will rightly be regulated through the energy independence Bill, but the market is complex and time-poor business owners still find it hard to find the right deal. Is the Secretary of State willing to explore measures to standardise business energy bills, and will he look at new data rights under smart data powers so that SMEs can take back control?

Question

The Government recently shelved plans to require solar panels on new car parks, despite the significant potential to generate clean electricity and support electric vehicle charging. What assessment has the Minister made of the impact of abandoning those proposals on the Government's clean power and net zero ambitions?

Question

My local community energy company, run by volunteers, is keen to get solar panels on the roofs of local public buildings but has struggled with obtaining permissions from the local authority. They missed two installation windows. Does the Minister agree that we need this process to hurry up?

Question

I have long championed rolling out small modular nuclear reactors. Despite being a welcome decision, Wylfa could be more extensive with both full-scale and SMR stations. Will the Secretary of State announce sites for further roll-out so that it is settled in the community and we can get that nuclear power on to the grid?

Question

I was elected on the back of three clear pledges, one being to work for job creation and prosperity in growing industries, including renewables. In Cornwall, we are already seeing 20% annual growth in this sector. What steps is the Minister taking to help us create those jobs?

Question

Regarding contracts for difference, will the Government now consider moving from a 100% revenue guarantee model to a partial coverage model, along the lines of what Australia now has?

Question

Putin's war in Ukraine and Trump's war in Iran have shown us the need to make Britain more resilient against global energy shocks. Can my hon. Friend set out what the Government are doing to ensure that domestic electricity prices are decoupled from global gas prices, so that my constituents can get the best out of cheap, green, local renewables?

Question

Just this year, Norway has opened up a licensing round for 70 new oil and gas blocks. It is reopening three old gas fields and has permitted development plans for three new fields. Meanwhile, this Government are still banning licences, taxing the industry out of business and not permitting Rosebank and Jackdaw. Why does the Secretary of State think he is right and our Norwegian friends are wrong?

Question

Business energy costs are a significant barrier, holding British business back from being competitive on the world stage. Has the Secretary of State done any analysis of the potential GDP growth from reducing business energy costs and getting British businesses moving?

Question

On heating oil, the Scottish National party Government boasted that they would add £5.4 million to the £4.6 million the UK Government gave to domestic consumers. However, there is scant evidence that that is reaching my constituents in the Western Isles, which have the highest fuel poverty figures in the country. Will the Minister join me in encouraging constituents to apply for support? Will he ask the Scottish Government to broaden the criteria and Advice Direct Scotland to get that money out the door, so that people are not left high and dry?

Question

South Crofty in my Camborne, Redruth and Hayle constituency is approaching the historic restoration of Cornish tin mining, but high energy costs risk the UK losing control of the supply chain in domestic processing and refining. If the Government are serious about building up a sovereign critical minerals supply chain, will the Minister meet me to discuss extending BICS and the industrial supercharger scheme to critical minerals?

Question

Will the Minister acknowledge that the highlands and islands produce a disproportionately large amount of our renewable energy? Will he also acknowledge that last week's Ofgem go-ahead for three pumped storage schemes will produce almost no jobs, no legacy housing and no community benefits, along with minimal, if any, advantage to the highlands of Scotland?

Question

The Government have worked with Ofgem to bring forward low or no standing charge schemes, which are supposedly open for trial. I cannot find them and neither can my residents. The access to those schemes is so small, so what are the Government doing to make them available to more people now?

Question

The UK's green economy is worth more than £100 billion a year, and nearly half a trillion pounds in investment is in the pipeline. What steps is the Minister taking to ensure that the contracts that his Department provides prioritise British firms and British jobs, so that we can prove our national capabilities and secure our energy?

Question

The Government have stressed the importance of energy independence, sovereignty and security. How concerned are they that it is difficult to pin down exactly how many and what percentage of the wind turbines in this country are produced in China?

Question

There is so much innovation going on in my constituency for floating offshore wind in the Celtic sea, including by companies such as Reflex Marine. We need the test and demo models up in the Celtic sea to test the technology. The contracts for difference in the next auction will be crucial for offshore wind in the Celtic sea. Will the Minister commit to recognising that in future auction rounds?

Question

Private companies looking to deploy new nuclear at Oldbury will need to address skills shortages, particularly around roles such as welding. When assessing proposals for the site, how will Ministers ensure developers invest in skills so that local people can benefit from the jobs created?

Question

Last night, Members of this House passed regulations to crack down on rogue landfill operators. Does the Minister agree that no public payments should be made to a landfill gas energy provider when that provider is linked to rogue landfill operations?