I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time.
This Government are focused on securing a better future for Britain. As the Chancellor set out to the House in his autumn statement:
“our job is to rebuild Britain...so that we leave to the next generation a stronger country than the one we inherited.”—[Official Report, 25 November 2015; Vol. 602, c. 1357.]
Achieving this vision for Britain means ensuring our energy security.
Our modern society simply could not function without the electricity, oil and gas we use to heat our homes, power our business and industry, and drive our transport system. The wellbeing of our economy and our citizens requires that the first priority of the Department of Energy and Climate Change should be energy security. But no responsible Government should take a risk on climate change either, because it is one of the greatest long-term threats to our economic security.