It is not possible to breakdown the revenue The Crown Estate receives from its offshore activity against constituency boundaries onshore.

The Crown Estate’s Annual report and accounts is available at:

http://ar2013.thecrownestate.co.uk/

and includes a section on Energy and Infrastructure.

The number of sub-15 kW wind turbines accredited under the feed-in tariff scheme during 2012 and 2013, were 1,747 and 327 respectively.

Installations are grouped into years based on their ‘commissioning date’ i.e. the date the technology was physically installed and deemed to be up and running.

The Department does not hold this information.

The renewables industry, including the small and medium wind manufacturers, is an important source of jobs and investment in the UK. In 2013, RenewableUK, the trade association for the onshore wind sector, reported that the UK is home to over 10 small and medium wind manufacturers and that nearly 3,800 sub-15 kW turbines were exported¹.¹ “R-UK Small and Medium Wind Market Report 2013” available at:

http://www.renewableuk.com/en/publications/index.cfm/Small-and-Medium-Wind-UK-Market-Report-2013

My hon. Friend and I have discussed this matter in the past. He knows that the MOD is working hard to find a solution to mitigate the effects of onshore wind turbines on the things that we do. In the meantime, it is important that the MOD does object to planning applications that may get in the way of its defence deliverables.

Further to the exchange that the Minister and I had in the House on 16 December, can he confirm that he would expect that an MOD objection on the grounds of low- flying aircraft in the area of a proposed onshore wind farm, such as Bullingdon Cross in my constituency, would be taken extremely seriously by any planning authority and by the Planning Inspectorate?

I can confirm that during this Parliament (since May 2010) 50 onshore wind farm planning appeals have been recovered by Ministers.

The information is held by local planning authority, rather than parliamentary constituency and a table has been placed in the Library of the House.

As I have said in my earlier answer, my Department does not centrally hold details of the generation capacity of wind turbine appeals.

As at 1 October 2013, there were 255 onshore wind farm appeals, of which 32 were or have subsequently been recovered.

I can confirm that 17 onshore wind farm appeals were recovered in 2013. This amounts to 6% of the number of onshore wind farm appeals received (280) during that period.

I also refer the hon. Member to the written statement of 9 April 2014, Official Report, columns 12-13WS, which explains the background to the recovery of these planning appeals.

The Government has worked with industry to establish councils (where they did not already exist) for each of the 11 sectors. Each council is a partnership that brings together industry representatives, Ministers and Government officials, but they operate in a way that best suits the individual needs of the sector. It is for each council to determine whether the membership and the minutes of meetings are published.

The International Education Council has met twice since it was formed. The Minister for Universities and Science, my right hon. Friend the Member for Havant (Mr Willetts), co-chaired the meeting in September 2013 with the Minister for Skills and Enterprise, my hon. Friend the Member for West Suffolk (Matthew Hancock), also in attendance. The Minister of State for Skills and Enterprise co-chaired the meeting in February 2014. The membership and minutes are available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/international-education-council

The Construction Council has met three times since its formation. The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has attended every meeting and I also attended the first. The membership for the council is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/210099/bis-13-955-construction-2025-industrial-strategy.pdf

The Offshore Wind Industry Council has met three times and I attended on each occasion. The membership and minutes are available at:

http://www.thecrownestate.co.uk/energy-infrastructure/offshore-wind-energy/working-with-us/offshore-wind-industry-council/

The Life Sciences Sector Councils includes the Ministerial Industry Strategy Group (MISG) and the Ministerial Medical Technology Strategy Group (MMTSG). These groups have been in operation for many years. However, following the launch of the industrial strategy in September 2012, the groups have both met three times. The Minister of State for Universities and Science and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Quality, my right hon. and noble Friend (Earl Howe), have attended each meeting but there has also been attendance from the Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), and the Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, my noble Friend (Lord Deighton), on occasions. The membership and minutes are available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/ministerial-industry-strategy-group

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/ministerial-medical-technology-strategy-group

The Nuclear Industry Council has met four times and has been attended by at least one Minister on each occasion (including the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), and myself). The membership and minutes are available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/nuclear-industry-council#membership

The Information Economy Council has met four times. The Minister of State for Universities and Science has attended three of these meetings and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, my hon. Friend the Member for Wantage (Mr Vaizey), chaired the fourth meeting in his absence. The membership and minutes are available at:

https://www.techuk.org/about/information-economy-council/leadership

The Oil and Gas Council has met four times with ministerial attendance from either the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills or myself at each meeting. The membership and minutes are available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/175480/bis-13-748-uk-oil-and-gas-industrial-strategy.pdf

The Agri-tech Council has met four times and has also held a telephone conference. There has been ministerial attendance from both the Minister of State for Universities and Science and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Natural Environment and Science, my noble Friend (Lord De Mauley) at three of the meetings and attendance from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Natural Environment and Science at the fourth. The council’s membership is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/227259/9643-BIS-UK_Agri_Tech_Strategy_Accessible.pdf

The Professional and Business Services Council has met six times since it was formed in December 2012. On each occasion, at least one BIS Minister (the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, myself and/or the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my noble Friend (Viscount Younger of Leckie)) attended. The council’s membership is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/211842/bis-13-922-growth-is-our-business-professional-and-business-services-strategy.pdf

The Aerospace Growth Partnership has met seven times since it was formed in 2011 with each meeting co-chaired by myself.

The Automotive Council has met on five occasions since the launch of industrial strategy. The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has attended each meeting and I have attended on three occasions. Membership of the council is available at:

http://www.automotivecouncil.co.uk/what-we-do/members

As I have said in my earlier answer, my Department does not centrally hold details of the generation capacity of wind turbine appeals.

As at 1 October 2013, there were 255 onshore wind farm appeals, of which 32 were or have subsequently been recovered.

I can confirm that 17 onshore wind farm appeals were recovered in 2013. This amounts to 6% of the number of onshore wind farm appeals received (280) during that period.

I also refer the hon. Member to the written statement of 9 April 2014, Official Report, columns 12-13WS, which explains the background to the recovery of these planning appeals.

Q5

.

Mark Lazarowicz (Edinburgh North and Leith) (Lab/Co-op):

Before he was elected, the Prime Minister said that “if they’d let me” he would put a wind turbine on No. 10 Downing street, making use of the cheapest and most developed form of renewable energy. Last week, he announced that his party wants to end support for onshore wind even though the Government’s own survey this week showed that 70% of the public now support it. What changed his mind?

What is changed is that we have seen a massive increase in onshore wind generation in our country. We will achieve, through what is in the planning system and under construction, the provision of approaching 10% of our electricity demand through onshore wind. The question is then whether it is right to continue to overrule local planners and local people and whether it continues to be right to put taxpayers’ money in after we have built out that onshore wind provision. I do not believe that it is, and the Conservative manifesto will make that very clear for local communities. Other parties will have to make their own choices.

[holding answer 9 April 2014]: The individual details of each appeal are submitted by the parties within a variety of documents, stored separately on the individual case files.

My Department does not analyse or keep running totals of the generation capacity of wind turbine appeals, and it would incur disproportionate cost to create such information retrospectively. The main consideration in wind turbine appeals is the potential impact of the development on the surrounding area.

Details on renewable energy projects are held on the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s Planning Database at:

https://restats.decc.gov.uk/cms/planning-database/

Provisional 2013 data show that 11.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide were displaced by onshore wind electricity generation in the UK. DECC does not publish a breakdown of electricity generated by onshore wind for each constituent country so carbon dioxide savings are only available for the UK as a whole.

Since the introduction of the new Planning Act 2008 regime in March 2010 in England and Wales (planning is devolved in Scotland), there is now a statutory maximum time scale of 12 months for the examination, report writing and decision making phases of applications for the development consent of nationally significant infrastructure projects (including offshore wind farms over 100MW). The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), has made decisions on three offshore wind farms under that regime, all within the statutory deadlines.

The time taken to construct the offshore wind farm following consent is a matter for the developer.