Speeches by Crichton.

“Thank you, just for clarity.”

“What is the refinery sector as a proportion of carbon tax in the UK? Do you pay most of the carbon tax, 2% of it or 10% of it? Do you know?”

“Paul, did you estimate the cost of that?”

“I have to say that this is a very underpowered urgent question. It is similar to a two-stroke engine attached to a rowing boat—[Interruption.]”

“I welcome the Secretary of State to his office and thank the Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Andrew Western), for a recent visit to the DWP debt and fraud centre in my constituency. There are 95 jobs at the centre doing tremendous work across the UK, …”

“I was, of course, referring to the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine (Andrew Bowie), who knows full well that he has missed the story here. Petrofac went into administration because the Dutch Government cut a contract for offshore wind farm developments. I dare say that that raises …”

“A return flight from my Western Isles/Na h-Eileanan an Iar constituency to Glasgow can cost £600 return. That is enough to make Donald Trump think twice about coming to his mother’s home island. There is an air discount scheme, but what we really need is a public service obligation, with Government support for those vi…”

“I thank the Minister for coming to the Dispatch Box, and the hon. Member for Aberdeenshire North and Moray East (Seamus Logan) for raising this important issue. There is a question of fairness in the geographical distribution of the fund, and the Minister should consider that; I hope the funding will be reviewed in due…”

“By whom do you need to be told that? Do you need to be told by Ministers?”

“Matt, do you have a role here? Does NESO have a role in helping or ascertaining what the community benefits should be for offshore projects?”

“I did not give you a chance to answer that £5,000 per megawatt per year question. That was said over a decade ago. It is not really transformative, is it?”

“Yes, when I talk about community, I do not want a forest path. I want to change people’s health outcomes and where they go to university. I want to change their lives with renewable energy, not just give them forest paths.”

“Would mandatory community benefit or community share affect the viability of the developments?”

“Yes. There is a difference between community benefit and community share, or community ownership, and you have operated that model onshore. Could you operate that model of municipalities or communities buying in offshore as well?”

“Thanks, all, for coming in. Finley, if we can carry on about community benefit, and offshore and onshore, there is a huge difference, of course, between a wind farm in Skye and one in the North sea, particularly in defining which community benefits. On our Atlantic coast, we have Spiorad na Mara, which has already agre…”

“GB Energy has its community energy in a box idea. Mark, if I understand your evidence correctly, if the Minister tells NESO to tell Ofgem to tell you to connect a community energy company instead of EDF, that is what you would do.”

“Sarah, you touched on what could be a definition of priorities and how to calibrate them. Can you expand on that?”

“Even if that was at your expense, Finley, would you support it?”

“The Minister would have to tell you whether he or she wants community energy prioritised.”

“Matt, what would your advice be to Ministers when it comes to prioritising connections?”