Mark Spencer: Is my hon. Friend also aware that the issue extends to the emergency services? Nottinghamshire police find themselves in a situation whereby their vehicle fleet is PFI-ed, and it costs hundreds of pounds just to repair a puncture.
Mark Spencer: I am pleased to have secured this debate on what I consider one of the most important issues the country faces at the moment. It is also a pleasure to serve for the first time under your chairmanship, Mr Howarth. I have a number of concerns that require a great deal of attention. Principally, our nation’s ability to ensure energy security is very important. Will we be able to keep the...
Mark Spencer: I will come to that point later. I should put on record that some of my constituents in Nottinghamshire travel to Warwickshire to work at Daw Mill. That we have so much coal under our feet is pertinent, as is the fact that so many constituents rely on the coal industry for employment. I will start by outlining the current usage and how we generate power. Coal produces more than 35% of the...
Mark Spencer: I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention. That point is fundamental to the debate: coal is recognised as being flexible, but we need to embrace the technology of carbon capture and storage. That is something that I want to explore in more detail later. It is interesting that my hon. Friend touches on carbon capture and storage, because those are new clean technologies that have been...
Mark Spencer: I thank the hon. Gentleman for that intervention and that is exactly the point—there is this gap and we must find a way to fill it. A Government of whatever colour have to address this issue quickly and grab it with both hands, because we cannot afford to be in a position where that gap increases and we cannot keep the power on. I therefore commit myself to supporting him in lobbying...
Mark Spencer: I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention. In fact, I have the Drax report here in front of me and I know that he is working very actively to ensure that his constituents are well represented in that consultation. Drax is a very good example of what can be achieved. The work that it has done in blending biomass with coal to improve its carbon footprint is an example of how we can improve...
Mark Spencer: The hon. Gentleman is absolutely correct, and I will cite some statistics later that support his view. Offshore wind has a role to play in assisting electricity generation but we do require that base load. I do not want to overemphasise this, but when the World cup final half-time whistle goes or when everyone wants to cook their turkey on Christmas day, we have to have the capacity to lift...
Mark Spencer: It is true that we need to take a balanced view and ensure that we explore the new technologies. I think that tidal and wave power are great, and if they work they will contribute a small amount to this nation’s energy security. The important thing to note though is that it will be a small amount, because those technologies do not have a large enough share of the market. The number of areas...
Mark Spencer: I thank the hon. Gentleman for that intervention because he makes a pertinent point. The other areas with which we are dealing, for example those in the middle east, are not as politically stable as they could be. We can easily foresee circumstances in which our ability to source energy from those parts of the world is compromised by political upheavals similar to those happening now. That...
Mark Spencer: I thank the hon. Gentleman for that intervention. The irony of the situation is that the German energy the Danish are reliant on is often produced with brown Czech coal, which is worse in terms of carbon emissions than UK coal. It does not make much sense at all. I am conscious that I am taking up quite a lot of time, and I know that other Members wish to speak, so I will try to conclude as...
Mark Spencer: I am grateful to the Minister for giving way, as I have taken up more than my quota of time. Given that the new technology will not be on the street until 2020, we will not be in a position to build nuclear power stations by that time scale, and renewable energy will not be large enough to make the shortfall, does he anticipate that the only way we can supply the nation will be by importing...
Mark Spencer: I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing this important debate. She has identified the importance of energy, but does she agree that modern technology has a role to play? I hope she will join me in encouraging the UK Government to embrace new technology and allow UK farmers to produce more food so that we are all well fed.
Mark Spencer: Does the Minister agree that it is also important to encourage local authorities to provide areas for allotments so that members of the public can not only grow their own food there but use them to understand food production and add to their own education?
Mark Spencer: Can the Minister explain briefly how he has managed to make such rapid progress in 12 months, given that the previous Administration made no progress whatsoever?
Mark Spencer: Given the Secretary of State’s comments about fluctuations in the price of imported fossil fuels, does he recognise the strategic importance of UK Coal and the market to delivering flexible electricity via carbon capture and storage? Will he undertake to work with the UK coal industry so that it can assist in solving the problems in which we find ourselves?
Mark Spencer: Will my hon. Friend give way?
Mark Spencer: Does my hon. Friend agree that, as we are talking not only about the Head of State but about the next in line to the crown of this great nation of ours, they should be allowed to travel in such a manner? Can he imagine a circumstance where the President of the United States arrived in the UK on easyJet? We should be proud that the head of this nation is allowed to travel in such style.
Mark Spencer: Does the hon. Gentleman recognise that defending our nation includes defending our Head of State?
Mark Spencer: The Chancellor referred to Merlin and the agreement with the banks, but is he aware that these banks are double-counting their lending by forcing businesses to convert overdrafts into long-term loans? A business in my constituency wants to expand. It has full order books and wants to take on more staff, but it cannot do so because not only are the banks not being helpful, but they are...
Mark Spencer: The Minister will be aware of how rapidly fuel and energy prices have increased. Am I right in thinking, however, that if the Chancellor had not taken action in the Budget, fuel prices would be 6p a litre higher today?