UK Parliament / Open data

Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill

Proceeding contribution from Greg Hands (Conservative) in the House of Commons on Wednesday, 3 November 2021. It occurred during Debate on bills on Nuclear Energy (Financing) Bill.

As I have outlined, the Bill is about nuclear. Creating a more diverse potential finance base is exactly what it is about. It is not biased in favour of one technology vis-à-vis another, but, as a Government, we have been absolutely clear about the important, growing role that nuclear will play. On Hinkley Point C, we think that that was the right model for the decision at that time. I think the hon. Gentleman’s problem is with nuclear as a whole rather than specific problems at a nuclear plant. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe said:

“International climate objectives will not be met if nuclear power is excluded”.

I think his policy is to exclude nuclear power in its entirety.

Members will be reassured that a project starting construction in 2023 will add only a very small amount to the average dual-fuel household bill during this Parliament—on average less than £1 per month during the full construction phase of the project. I believe that these bill impacts are proportionate, given the benefits that nuclear offers our electricity system. Ultimately, nuclear power will deliver a lower-cost system for consumers compared with reliance on intermittent power sources alone. The RAB model will make new nuclear projects cheaper. Our analysis has shown that using this funding model for a nuclear project could produce a cost saving for consumers of more than £30 billion, compared with funding projects through a contract for difference.

Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
702 c980 
Session
2021-22
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
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