Speeches by Esterson.

“So how quickly do the Government need to follow your recommendations?”

“I want to come back to what you were saying about your No. 1 recommendation, which is about making electricity cheaper by removing policy costs. Will delaying doing so have an impact on the achievement of your balance pathway?”

“On behalf of those of my constituents who work at JLR Halewood, I thank my right hon. Friend for the stability and confidence that she has given to our automotive industry; it will be enormously reassuring to them. The last Government confirmed through Mark Harper, the then Secretary of State, that it was already cheap…”

“It is a shame that the Conservative Members who were heckling the Minister have forgotten their own Government’s failure to tackle the problems of high industrial energy prices. [Interruption.] They can heckle again now, but they did nothing in government. Two weeks ago, I was at the Tata steelworks with the Energy Sec…”

“The US tariffs have serious implications for UK industry. They are a reminder of the importance of the industrial strategy and Government support, including for domestic steel- making capability, which, sadly, the Conservative party neglected badly over 14 years. Will my right hon. Friend confirm that he is fully commi…”

“I thought that I heard you say it.”

“I thought I would give you the chance to clear that up. Your 2024 annual report does not refer to electrical infrastructure or substations. Was it a mistake not to include it in the report?”

“We are talking about this very serious incident, are we not? That is the one that we need to focus on today. You accept that that was a mistake. Thank you. The airport was down for a lot longer than railways or domestic customers. Is it reasonable for airlines and passengers to expect that a fire at a single electrical…”

“I think we have got the message. Nigel Wicking, what is your view on whether this was reasonable?”

“Eliane Algaard, should it have been possible for the system to have been back up and running to give Heathrow full power much more quickly?”

“Thomas Woldbye, what is your answer to those two questions from SSEN and National Grid?”

“How long would it take to switch back to North Hyde if the two other sources that you are relying on at the moment were to fail for some reason, because that is the situation that we are in today?”

“You have a private network operated by UK Power Networks. Is that part of the problem here?”

“Is it part of the problem in terms of how long it took to re-establish power?”

“Eliane Algaard, what is your view on the arrangements? My understanding is that you do not have visibility of what goes on at Heathrow.”

“The Energy Security and Net Zero Select Committee has heard significant evidence that businesses use private networks because you can connect more easily, and it is quicker and significantly cheaper to operate. Is that really why you have a private network?”

“The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy published a report in 2022 saying that power outages have the potential to cause widespread economic and societal damage. Have any of you been looking at the work of the JCNSS and Heathrow in particular, and did you consider its findings?”

“I just want to check something that you said there, Thomas Woldbye. Did you say that all three substations were down at the same time?”

“I am glad that we cleared that up.”

“Alice Delahunty, we are hearing that concern that it is a reason for private networks being used by significant energy users. Is it a concern for you?”