Written questions by Brash.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of clean energy industries on the economy of Hartlepool.

Clean energy is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver economic security for workers in every part of the country. Our Clean Energy Jobs Plan showed how by 2030 we could create over 400k good new clean energy jobs across the country, including up to 15k direct roles in the North East. Hartlepool will be a key driver for the region, we recently announced plans X-Energy and Centrica’s have announced proposed advanced modular reactors to create up to 2,500 good, skilled jobs in the town. Alongside wider roles in the region supporting the East Coast Cluster and Viking CCUS which could support tens of thousands of jobs across the region.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that British suppliers are used for major energy infrastructure projects.

We have always been clear; our country’s clean energy future must be built in Britain. That’s why we launched the Clean Industry Bonus for offshore wind. The first round was hugely successful – more than doubling the budget for developers to invest in UK factories. It’s why we set up our National Wealth Fund to invest in crucial supply chains. And it’s why we created Great British Energy – which has already announced £300 million to invest in domestic offshore wind supply chains.

Whether his Department has plans to build a new nuclear reactor on the Hartlepool nuclear power station site.

A new National Policy Statement will be developed to provide the planning framework for nuclear power beyond 2025. We believe the sites identified in the current National Policy Statement (EN6), including the privately owned Hartlepool site, are likely to retain inherent positive attributes that make them attractive for consideration for development.