David Anderson (PPS (Bill Rammell, Minister of State), Foreign & Commonwealth Office; Blaydon, Labour)
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what research his Department has (a) evaluated and (b) commissioned on the volume of carbon dioxide emitted from processes involving the use of indigenous deep-mined coal compared to similar processes involving the use of tar sands, shale and other unconventional oils.
Mike O'Brien (Minister of State, Department for Energy and Climate Change; North Warwickshire, Labour)



The Government agrees with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in its Fourth Assessment Report which shows that the emissions associated with extraction and conversion of these unconventional sources of energy are several times those associated with conventional sources of oil per unit of energy produced. The Government have not made an assessment of the volumes of carbon dioxide produced by processes involving unconventional sources of oil compared with indigenous coal.

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Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will hold discussions with the trustees of the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme on ways to improve benefits for scheme members.
Mr. Mike O'Brien: An actuarial valuation of the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme is being conducted at present. Should any surplus emerge, Ministers will discuss with the scheme trustees how they might use their share to improve members' benefits.
No change there then

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UNIONS are demanding the return of Coal to the region with the opening of two new drift mines under the North Sea.
The National Union of Mineworkers has called on the Government to carry out a feasibility study on work needed to open two new drift mines off the coast at Seaburn and Amble which they say would access 400 million tonnes of coal and create 7,000 jobs.
David Guy, of the North East NUM, said the Government had the chance to create a “new Nissan” in the region.
Speaking just days before the start of the 25th anniversary of the miners’ strike, Mr Guy said his union was confident new technology would pave the way for increased mining.
He said: “The Northern region has the expertise, the skills and the reserves are here and the opportunity is right there.
“All we are asking for is a feasibility study.
“I believe that coal can play a significant part in the regeneration of this region’s economy, it could be a big part of the economy again for the next 50 years. I think this could be the next Nissan.”
But many in the coal industry are warning that the Government is about to “repeat the mistakes of 20 years ago” by failing to back scientists in Newcastle looking into new ways of reducing the harmful gases emitted when coal is burnt.
Newcastle scientists are among those leading the way on research into carbon capture and storage.
These experts are now calling on ministers to provide extra funding or else “watch as once again other European countries lead the way”.
They have told the Government it will not meet all of its energy needs from renewable sources such as wind and solar power, and must give the region support as it seeks ways of making coal-burning power stations greener.
Known as CCS, the different ways of reducing carbon emission can include treating coal before it is burnt or refitting power stations to capture dangerous gasses and bury them under the North Sea.

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Mike O'Brien(Minister of State, Department for Energy and Climate Change; North Warwickshire, Labour) In the period 1997-2005, the then Department for Trade and Industry supported industrially led research and development through the Clean Coal Programme, spend as follows. It has not been possible to provide separate figures for carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects for this period.



 
£ million


1997-98
3.1


1998-99
2.9


1999-2000
2.5


2000-01
4.3


2001-02
4.4


2002-03
3


2003-04
5


2004-05
6.5



Since 2005, funding for industrially led R and D has been the responsibility of the Department for Innovation Universities and Skills' Technology Strategy Board.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) provides support for demonstration of components for CCS and pilot scale CCS through the Carbon Abatement Technologies Demonstration Programme now supported via the Environmental Transformation Fund. Since the programme was launched in October 2006 it has spent:



 
£ million


2005-06
0


2006-07
0.1


2007-08
0.1


2008-09 to date
0.3



A further joint call, worth some £15million, under this programme was announced on 12 February 2009, with the TSB and Northern Way.
In addition the DECC is supporting a full scale CCS demonstration project to be operational by 2014. Given the unique nature of the UK's CCS project it is difficult to provide a definitive assessment of costs. It is also the case that the final cost may vary significantly according to the design of the winning project. We expect to develop a much clearer picture of both capital and operating costs during the competition process as we undertake detailed negotiations with the three pre-qualified bidders.
As a new Department an estimate of spend for future years cannot be given. The annual budgets for DECC for the financial years 2009-10 and 2010-11 have been agreed with HM Treasury and DECC is currently allocating these budgets to its different responsibilities through a business planning process.
DECC also undertakes a number of other activities that will facilitate the introduction of CCS. An example is the Energy Act 2008 which sets the framework for offshore storage of CO2.

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Royal Bank of Scotland has taken a step closer to full-scale nationalisation as it unveiled a record £24.1 billion loss and plans to raise up to £25.5 billion from the taxpayer.

The firm - already 70% state-owned - is raising the extra funds to strengthen its balance sheet and insure around £325 billion in toxic debts.

RBS will issue £13 billion in special 'B' shares to the Government, as well as a further £6.5 billion to take part in the Treasury's Asset Protection Scheme. It can also call on a further £6 billion if necessary.

RBS has already taken £20 billion in public funds.

While the Government's shareholding in terms of votes will be capped at 75%, its economic interest in RBS - its claim on RBS's assets - could rise to 95% depending on its future performance.

Chief executive Stephen Hester said: "The economic stake could be anywhere from 75% frankly all the way up to 95%."

Mr Hester also gave a strong signal that tens of thousands of job losses are on the way at the beleaguered bank as he said he "wouldn't dissent" from reports that as many as 20,000 posts could be lost.

Derek Simpson, joint leader of Unite, said: "These historic and humiliating losses bring into sharp focus just how reckless RBS's former management team have behaved.

The whole country is paying the price through job cuts and repossessions on a massive scale. It is time to take control and fully nationalise this bank. You cannot have a state bailout on one hand while allowing the spectre of thousands of job losses to loom over staff on the other.

The Government has set a precedent for intervention in the day-to-day running of RBS. They must now intervene to protect the workers in call centres, branches and back offices who are the victims of the credit crunch, not the culprits."

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