Speeches by McCluskey.

“That really gets to the heart of the point, which is that the Conservatives are abandoning their long-term commitment, which was in the national interest and on which we had consensus across this Chamber. They are abandoning the national interest in favour of what they think is their short-term political interest.”

“I know my hon. Friend is a champion for that industry and for his constituents. I will pass that on to colleagues in the Department for Business and Trade, who will look at it. The previous Government stood idly by as jobs went overseas, but we will not. Through our industrial strategy, we are taking action to reduce i…”

“Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. With that in mind, I might not take further interventions from hon. Members. In Carrington in Greater Manchester, there will be 200 jobs in the region—I could go on. All those jobs are what the Conservatives are turning their backs on—the new clean jobs of the future. While we sprint to…”

“The other solution is that we get off gas—that we move away from gas on to clean power. I would say to the right hon. Gentleman that the warm home discount, which is giving support to one in six households across the country this winter, is providing £150 of support—[Interruption.] The right hon. Member for East Surrey…”

“I would like to make some progress on what I was saying about the North sea. We are working with industry and the Scottish Government to extend the energy skills passport, making it easier and quicker for oil and gas workers to bring their expertise into new sectors. In the coming weeks, we will also publish a response…”

“I am coming to this Chamber and saying that we need to continue to invest in building out the grid. That is what that levy pays for, and those companies that the right hon. Lady has mentioned know that that is what it pays for. If we fail to do it, it will lead to higher bills for consumers across the country.”

“My hon. Friend makes a pertinent and interesting point. It is interesting to see this turnaround by the Conservatives. I am struck by something the hon. Member for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine (Andrew Bowie) said before: “Look, nobody’s saying that net zero was a mistake. Net zero in the round was the eminently se…”

“One moment—the right hon. Gentleman will allow me to make progress. We have been investing billions in carbon capture, hydrogen and offshore wind. We are also providing up to £20 million of funding from the UK and Scottish Governments to ensure that the existing workforce benefits from new opportunities in new industri…”

“We have been net importers of oil and gas since 2004. The Conservatives are making the precise point for us. We want to reduce the reliance on imports and we want to reduce the reliance on oil and gas by building clean, home-grown energy here in Britain.”

“The hon. Lady makes a timely intervention because I am about to address all those points in this section of the speech. Nowhere is the transition more important than in the North sea. For decades, its workers, businesses and communities have helped power our country and our world, using all their skill to tackle mammot…”

“The hon. Gentleman will allow me to make some progress. The data shows that solar and onshore wind remain the cheapest power sources to build and operate in this country. When faced with a choice between investing in new, expensive gas and increasing our reliance on unstable fossil fuel markets, or the alternative of c…”

“If she will allow me to make progress, I will allow her to intervene. Those would leave billpayers across Britain to deal with the consequences. The reality is, as the shadow Secretary of State must know, that with our ageing gas fleet, half of which is more than 20 years old, in any scenario we would need to invest in…”

“My hon. Friend makes an excellent point. I will carry on arguing for jobs across the UK, but particularly in Scotland and not all in Cornwall. I will make some progress on my speech. Even in the face of rapid progress across the country, some, including many on the Opposition Benches, still cling to the status quo of s…”

“We have committed and remain committed to the reduction in energy bills laid out by the Secretary of State. The Scottish National party can oppose GB Energy as much as it wants, but the company will deliver good, high-quality jobs in Scotland. On what the hon. Gentleman said about the Secretary of State, I should say t…”

“Allow me to make some progress. In just 18 months, we have made the biggest investment in clean, home-grown energy in British history, with more than £60 billion of Government funding and a further £50 billion of private investment. As I said, we have consented enough clean power for the equivalent of 7.5 million homes…”

“If we had built the grid as we had planned to, we would not be paying those constraint payments—that is the whole point. Every wind turbine we put up, every solar panel we install and every piece of grid we construct are helping to reduce our reliance on gas.”

“I think I am right in saying that the projects that we have consented since last July would power 7.5 million homes through solar. The work being undertaken by the Secretary of State on the solar sprint will see us go even further on solar. Let me make some progress. A year and a half ago, fed up with the status quo th…”

“The Conservatives are turning their back on the policy they followed for 14 years, which the shadow Secretary of State supported for years. Bills did not rise because we built too many solar farms or wind turbines. As the Conservatives’ motion helpfully points out, we are still dependent on oil and gas for three quarte…”

“I have mentioned the war in Ukraine in 2022, but this was not a crisis caused only by the war in Ukraine. It was a crisis caused by 14 years of under-investment—as I just said there, it was dither and delay.”

“I beg to move amendment (b), to leave out from “House” to the end of the Question and insert: “welcomes the extension of the Warm Homes Discount which this winter will provide £150 off energy bills for 2.7 million more families, taking the total households supported to around six million; regrets that the previous Gove…”