Speeches by Shanks.

“We are somewhat through the looking glass with the response from the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for West Suffolk, who seemed to forget in his long list of things that were wrong with the contracts previously that it was his Government that agreed them. This Government have sought to improve every single aspect of…”

“We are considerably off the topic of the draft regulations, but since the shadow Minister makes the point, I will answer the question. We have not said that there will be no new oil and gas. We have said that there will be no new licences to explore new fields, taking into account all the available evidence, which is t…”

“I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Contracts for Difference (Miscellaneous Amendments (No. 2) Regulations 2025. It is a pleasure once again to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Hobhouse. The draft regulations were initially laid before the House on 11 March, but they were re-laid on 2 April to …”

“I thank the hon. Member for Taunton and Wellington for tabling the new clause, and the hon. Member for Didcot and Wantage for speaking to it—and for his praise of Labour councils, which we are always happy to hear from colleagues across the House. I recognise the important work and example of local area energy plans wh…”

“A working group, involving people from across the Department and all those involved in this area, has been working on these proposals, and a consultation will be brought forward shortly. In the King’s Speech, we committed to a Bill that addresses a number of different areas in the energy space, and we hope that this ar…”

“It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Ms Jardine. I have missed our Wednesday “Politics Scotland” soirées, so it is nice to be with you again. I will begin by speaking to new clause 10. I was going to speak to new clause 31 as well, but I do not know whether anyone intends to move it. New clause 10, which was table…”

“I hate to let the hon. Gentleman down at this hour of the Committee, but I will outline why we cannot accept his new clauses. I think he will, however, be pleased with the Government’s position on this. I will turn first to new clause 98, which requires the Government to consult on the implementation of measures to giv…”

“In all our diaries, the session was from 2 pm until 5 pm. That is when the Government will adjourn.”

“I am standing in as both Energy Minister and a Whip, Ms Jardine. As far as I know, the assumption was that we would have made speedier progress on various clauses today, and might have concluded line-by-line scrutiny by 4 pm. I do not think it was agreed that we would adjourn at 4 pm, but I am not party to any of those…”

“I will not, because I am conscious that there is another debate to come. These questions about the planning system are important. There is a rigorous process in place. We recently raised the threshold for solar projects going into the NSIP regime. I seem to remember a number of Opposition Members opposed that, but the …”

“I will briefly give way to the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont).”

“I am listening.”

“As I think I said the last time we had this exchange, I always welcome the hon. Gentleman’s numerous written parliamentary questions to me—it is a treat to see them every morning, and he does raise important points. I am not going to put a figure on it right now, but we have clearly said that it is important to find th…”

“I thank the hon. Lady for her point, but it was not me saying that this is not a competition—it was her own shadow Energy Secretary just a few months ago. I do not accept her point, either; I will come to that very briefly, but in a bit more detail, in a second. Let us not forget that this is also about tackling the cl…”

“I will make a bit of progress, because I am conscious that another debate is to start soon. Rooftop solar, as many Members have raised, is important. It is not an either/or. We see a real opportunity to put solar on every possible rooftop right across the country. We have announced our ambitions for new homes and for i…”

“First, I say to the hon. Member that I have one of Europe’s largest wind farms on my doorstep, so I know exactly what it is like. I would also say that bringing down bills and delivering energy security matters to his constituents as much as it matters to mine, and a robust planning system is in place. Opposition Membe…”

“I begin by congratulating the hon. Member for Sleaford and North Hykeham (Dr Johnson) on securing a debate on this important issue. It is the first day in a while that Westminster has not been basking in sunlight, although I did note—contrary to some contributions made by Conservative Members—that solar is currently ge…”

“I thank all Members of both Houses for their continued scrutiny of this important Bill. In particular, I extend my thanks to my noble Friend the Minister for Energy Security, Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, for his expertise and, dare I say, resilience, which ensured that we reached the resolution that we are here to discuss…”

“My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We want Great British Energy to be a sector leader in this area. It must meet all the standards that we expect from every other company, but we want it to go further and really demonstrate what is possible in this space. He raises a wider question about the importance of Great Britis…”

“I thank all hon. and right hon. Members for their contributions to this important debate. I will start with the intervention made by the hon. Member for North Dorset (Simon Hoare), which set the tone. He said that there is an important cross-party consensus on this issue, and I think that that has come through in all t…”