Energy Bill

I beg to move, That the Bill be now read the Third time. The Bill, taken with the Planning Bill and the Climate Change Bill, represents a coherent legislative response to the challenges of tackling climate change and ensuring secure energy supplies. Like many colleagues, I recognise that the challenges of global warming and energy security are two of the big questions and big themes for the 21st century. Against that rather grand backdrop, the Bill deals with specific but important issues. With the UK projected to import well over 50 per cent.—possibly much more—of its gas by 2020, a fit for purpose regime for offshore gas projects is essential. The Bill makes important amendments to current offshore legislation to create a new regulatory and licensing framework specifically designed for offshore gas storage and offshore liquefied natural gas unloading projects. That will simplify the regulatory process and create greater clarity and certainty for investors. The Bill also creates a new regulatory framework for offshore carbon dioxide storage projects. While there has been considerable debate about the Government's carbon capture and storage demonstration competition, there is agreement in all parties that CCS is a vital technology for the future. Provisions in the Bill will help enable its long-term development.