PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE
Clean Energy Projects - 11 September 2024 (Commons/Commons Chamber)

This is my first oral questions session as Welsh Secretary, so I congratulate and welcome all Members elected to represent Welsh constituencies, particularly the 84% of those Members who sit on the Labour Benches. I also welcome the shadow Secretary of State for Scotland, the hon. Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont), to the Front Bench—for Wales questions. Finally, I pay tribute to our fantastic Welsh Olympians and Paralympians, who have brought home a record medal haul to a very proud nation.

I recently met the Energy Secretary and visited the energy cluster in Pembrokeshire with the Deputy Prime Minister. The Government have established Great British Energy to drive down bills, create jobs and deliver energy security. Its new partnership with the Crown Estate will boost new green technologies, such as floating offshore wind in the Celtic sea. That will supercharge the work already undertaken by the Welsh Government, which the Prime Minister saw at first hand in west Wales with the new First Minister.

I support my right hon. Friend’s sentiments, and wish her well in her job. In advance of the statement, what can she say about jobs and investment in this crucial sector?

I am delighted that seven Welsh tidal, solar and offshore wind projects were successful in securing contracts in the Government’s main scheme for supporting low-carbon electricity generation. Those projects will support the Government’s mission to deliver clean power by 2030, as well as creating high-quality green jobs and attracting private investment. I look forward to further Welsh projects coming through in future rounds.

I thank my right hon. Friend for her answer; I am delighted to see her in her place. I am pleased to say that the development of the skills needed for such projects is well under way in Clwyd North. Creating Enterprise in Rhyl works with local social housing providers to develop energy-efficient housing solutions, and has partnered with Rhyl College to train local people in renewable energy, green heating and solar technologies, giving them the key skills needed for the green energy sector, and us the local trained workforce that we need. Does my right hon. Friend agree that green energy offers huge growth and employment potential for areas such as Clwyd North, and will she join me on a visit to Creating Enterprise the next time she is back home in north Wales?

I congratulate my hon. Friend on winning her seat. The Government have a clear mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower by investing in home-grown energy to grow the economy, create jobs, boost skills and strengthen our energy independence. In Wales, we have the resources and skills to be a leader in cutting-edge energy technologies, creating high-quality jobs right across the country, including in north Wales. It would be a pleasure to visit Creating Enterprise with my hon. Friend.

My right hon. Friend mentioned the exciting opportunities from offshore wind for the people and economy of Wales. Can she tell the House about the discussions that she and her Cabinet colleagues have had with the Crown Estate about maximising the benefits from those opportunities?

We believe that the new innovative partnership between Great British Energy and the Crown Estate will leverage up to £60 billion of private investment into the UK’s drive for energy independence. I am delighted that the Crown Estate has today published plans to bring an additional 20 GW to 30 GW of offshore wind to market by 2030. That is excellent news for Wales’s clean energy ambitions, particularly for floating offshore wind in the Celtic sea. I recently met the Energy Secretary, and separately the Crown Estate, to discuss how this new industry can deliver jobs and growth across Wales.

Will the Secretary of State set out how Great British Energy will deliver benefits to the port of Milford Haven and to families across my constituency?

I welcome my hon. Friend to his seat. I had the privilege of visiting the port of Milford Haven energy cluster in Pembrokeshire with him and the Deputy Prime Minister in August. I really value the critical role that the port plays in securing the UK’s energy supply, and I am proud that the region is pioneering new green technologies. We have established Great British Energy to drive investment in those technologies, which will deliver sustainable skilled jobs in Pembrokeshire and across Wales.

Ynys Môn has a long history of clean energy production, but Tory delays on Wylfa have cost the island over 400 jobs since 2010. In March, the Secretary of State urged the UK Government to get on with delivering new nuclear power. Now that she is in power, will she back those words with a concrete plan?

I welcome the hon. Lady to her place. Our manifesto commitment to delivering new nuclear in places such as Wylfa still stands—we will do that. The Government have now completed the purchase of the Wylfa site, as she knows. We will end over a decade of inaction by the previous Government on nuclear power, as part of our wider plans to get Britain building again.

I call the shadow Secretary of State.

I congratulate new Ministers on their appointments.

The last Conservative Government spearheaded various clean energy schemes for Wales, including the Celtic freeport, which has the potential to create more than 10,000 green jobs. Will the Secretary of State join me in recognising that the last Conservative Government led the way in delivering clean energy projects for Wales? Does she recognise that the Welsh Government also have to play their part, and what discussions she has had with them about their own plans to support clean energy projects in Wales?

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his remarks. My colleague the Secretary of State for Business and Trade said immediately after the election that we do not intend to make any changes to existing freeport commitments. I am backing the delivery of the two freeports in Wales, and I am very pleased that, with the involvement of the Welsh Government, we have fair work elements in those freeports, which I fully support.