3 Whitehall Place, London | |
Department overview | |
---|---|
Formed | 2008 |
Dissolved | 14 July 2016 |
Jurisdiction | United Kingdom |
Headquarters | 3 Whitehall Place, London |
Annual budget | £1.5 billion (current) & £1.5 billion (capital) in 2011–12 [1] |
Child Department | |
Website | www |
The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom created on 3 October 2008, by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to take over some of the functions related to energy of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, and those relating to climate change of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
It was led at time of closure by the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Amber Rudd MP. [2] Following Theresa May's appointment as Prime Minister in July 2016, Rudd became Home Secretary and the department was disbanded and merged with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, to form the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy under Greg Clark MP.
The department released a major White Paper in July 2009, setting out its purpose and plans. [3] The majority of DECC's budget was spent on managing the historic nuclear sites in the United Kingdom, in 2012/13 this being 69% of its budget spent through the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. The costs to the government of nuclear decommissioning are expected to increase when the last of the United Kingdom's Magnox reactors are shut down and no longer produce an income. [4]
The department was somewhat resurrected in February 2023 with the creation of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, carrying almost the same responsibilities as this department once did.
In July 2014, a private member's bill was proposed in Parliament, sponsored by Conservative MP Peter Bone, to abolish the Department of Energy and Climate Change and absorb its portfolio into the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. In the House of Commons, it was scheduled for a second reading on 6 March 2015. However, as a private members bill, it was unlikely to be passed without government support, which in the event it failed to get. [8]
Mr Bone reintroduced his Bill on 29 June 2015. It did not progress beyond its first reading. [9] However, the proposed disbanding and merger did occur, shortly after the appointment of Theresa May as Prime Minister.
The devolution of energy policy varies around the United Kingdom; most aspects in Great Britain are decided at Westminster. Key reserved and excepted energy matters (i.e. not devolved) are as follows:
Scotland [10]
Northern Ireland
Nuclear energy is excepted. [11]
The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment is responsible for general energy policy. [12]
Wales
Under the Welsh devolution settlement, specific policy areas are transferred to the National Assembly for Wales rather than reserved to Westminster.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom. Concordats set out agreed frameworks for co operation, between it and the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive, which have devolved responsibilities for these matters in their respective nations.
Sir Edward Jonathan Davey is a British politician who has served as Leader of the Liberal Democrats since 2020. He served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition as Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change from 2012 to 2015 and as Deputy Leader to Jo Swinson in 2019. An "Orange Book" liberal, he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingston and Surbiton since 2017, and from 1997 to 2015.
The Climate Change Levy (CCL) is a tax on energy delivered to non-domestic users in the United Kingdom.
Nicholas Richard Hurd is a British politician who served as Minister for London from 2018 to 2019 and Minister of State for Policing and the Fire Service from 2017 to 2019. A member of the Conservative Party, he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner from 2010 to 2019. Hurd was first elected as the MP for Ruislip-Northwood in 2005.
The energy policy of the United Kingdom refers to the United Kingdom's efforts towards reducing energy intensity, reducing energy poverty, and maintaining energy supply reliability. The United Kingdom has had success in this, though energy intensity remains high. There is an ambitious goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in future years, but it is unclear whether the programmes in place are sufficient to achieve this objective. Regarding energy self-sufficiency, UK policy does not address this issue, other than to concede historic energy security is currently ceasing to exist.
The National Nuclear Laboratory is a UK government owned and operated nuclear services technology provider covering the whole of the nuclear fuel cycle. It is fully customer-funded and operates at six locations in the United Kingdom. Its customers have included the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, Sellafield Ltd, Westinghouse, the Health and Safety Executive, the Ministry of Defence, the UK Atomic Energy Authority, VT Nuclear and British Energy. It also has links with academia, including collaborative agreements on waste immobilisation and disposal with the University of Sheffield and on nuclear materials research with the University of Manchester.
Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change was a British Government cabinet position from 2008 to 2016. The Department of Energy and Climate Change was created on 3 October 2008 when then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown reshuffled his Cabinet.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) was a ministerial department of the United Kingdom Government created on 5 June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR). It was disbanded on the creation of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 14 July 2016.
Amber Augusta Rudd is a British former politician who served as Home Secretary from 2016 to 2018 and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2018 to 2019. She was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Hastings and Rye, first elected in 2010, representing the Conservative Party, and stood down from parliament in 2019. She identifies herself as a one-nation conservative, and has been associated with both socially liberal and economically liberal policies.
David John Mowat is a former Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Warrington South, and was first elected at the 2010 general election. He was appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Care and Support at the Department of Health in July 2016. He lost the seat to Labour at the 2017 election.
Sir Alok Kumar Sharma is a British politician who served as President for COP26 from 2021 to 2022, having previously served as Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from 2020 to 2021. Sharma has been Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Reading West since 2010.
The Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition agreement was a policy document drawn up following the 2010 general election in the United Kingdom. It formed the terms of reference governing the Cameron–Clegg coalition, the coalition government comprising MPs from the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats.
The Green Deal was a UK government policy initiative that gave homeowners, landlords and tenants the opportunity to pay for energy efficient home improvements through the savings on their energy bills from 2012 to 2015. At the heart of the Green Deal was the rule that savings on bills would exceed the cost of the work. By meeting this 'Golden Rule', consumers were able to receive energy savings without direct cost. Consumers then paid back the cost of such improvements through the expected savings in their energy bills. However, there is no guarantee that the eventual savings made by consumers will match the cost of the loans they take out to make the improvements and industry bodies recognised there was a risk consumers could end up out of pocket.
The Energy Act 2013 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, relating to the energy sector. It succeeded the Energy Act 2010. The Act focuses on setting decarbonisation targets for the UK, and reforming the electricity market. The Act was intended by Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Ed Davey to "attract investment to bring about a once-in-a-generation transformation of our electricity market".
Gregory David Clark is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities from 7 July 2022 to 6 September 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, he has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Tunbridge Wells since 2005. He is currently the Chair of the Science and Technology Select Committee.
The position of Minister of State at the Department of Energy and Climate Change was a middle-ranking ministerial position in the Government of the United Kingdom. Holders of this office deputised for the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change. When the DECC was dissolved in 2016, this office fell out of use.
Timothy John Stone, CBE is a British businessman and senior expert adviser with interests in infrastructure, finance, nuclear power and water supply. He is a non-executive director of the Arup Group, power company Horizon Nuclear Power and is a former senior expert non-executive director on the board of the European Investment Bank. He was also a non-executive director of Anglian Water from 2011 to 2015. He was appointed Chair of the UK's Nuclear Industry Association in October 2018.
The Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom designed to introduce directly elected mayors to combined local authorities in England and Wales and to devolve housing, transport, planning and policing powers to them. The bill was introduced to the House of Lords by Baroness Williams of Trafford, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, on 28 May 2015.
Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union or, informally, Brexit Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the business of the Department for Exiting the European Union, as well as for the UK's withdrawal from the European Union (EU), informally referred to as "Brexit". The secretary of state oversaw Brexit negotiations following a 2016 referendum, in which a majority voted in favour of exiting the EU. The officeholder was a member of the Cabinet.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) was a department of His Majesty's Government.