Over Half Way Through! + NEPIC & BOC MPs Dinner and Discussion
I’m just over half way through my time at Westminster and have very much settled into the work and environment of the place now. I’ve nearly finished the interviews for my briefing note, which included (and my thanks goes out to them)
• The CBI
• UK Energy Research Centre
•The Energy Intensive Users Group
• Tata Steel
• UK Steel
• Mineral Products Association
• Carbon Capture and Storage Association
• NEPIC (North East of England Process Industry Cluster)
• DECC (Department of Energy and Climate Change) & BIS (Business Innovation and Skills) fingers crossed sometime this week
• Any many others…
I’m now working my way through my notes and the numerous 100+page reports I’ve read to condense the topic of ‘Low Carbon Technologies for Energy Intensive Industries’ into 4 pages of laymen terms, non-biased, briefing note. Which I’m now starting to realise is no trivial task…
It has definitely been an interesting time to tackle such a question with the Government’s Carbon Floor Price announcement in the April budget and the on-going Energy Market Reform leading to great concerns as to its effect on the competitiveness of UK industry. Then came Chancellors Autumn statement the other week to try and mitigate against these and other costs to energy intensive industry with Government support, which could be in the region of over £200m, although the exact details are yet to be worked out. This all provides a financial and regulatory background to the development and adoption of technology in these industries to help the government to reach its legally binding emissions targets. Where without such support such industries would become uncompetitive which could leading to closures and lack of investment – to the detriment of the UK economy and potentially worldwide emissions if activities are moved to a country with less stringent targets.
Through my interviews it has been interesting to hear how policy and its financial implications ultimately impact on the investment in the low carbon technologies I’ve come across. Particularly those transformative ones such as carbon capture and storage (CCS), which in an industrial setting has not yet reached the stage of development and support as is seen in the power sector, and that need many years and £billions before they can be realized commercially. Getting this right balance between dis-incentivising CO2 emissions yet creating an environment to encourage CO2 abatement investment in the UK is a fascinating question and one that looks set to constantly evolve as both technology and policy adapt to one another over the years to come.
NEPIC & BOC MPs Dinner and Discussion
Last week I was also kindly invited to attend an evening meal organised by NEPIC and BOC at the Houses of Parliament. 37 of us sat round a large dining table in Westminster and I got to witness representatives from some of the largest process industries in the UK talk with MPs and Lords about various issues impacting industry in the North East from skills and internships to access to financing. It was great to witness what was an open discussion that sought collaboration and cooperation between industry and parliamentarians to the benefit of those living in the North East – which in my eyes seemed to produce some really positive exchanges.
As Christmas is fast approaching it’s off to the House of Lords Gift Shop for me to pick up a few Christmas presents, now should I get ‘House White’ or ‘Speakers Vodka’ or maybe Portcullis branded socks?
Scope/Outline of my POSTnote & PMQ’s
Hello all, please follow the link below to find a copy of the outline of the briefing note which I’m working on and I’m sending out to my first potential interviewees. If you wish to have any input on the note please feel free to contact me using my details contained within it.
Scope – Low Carbon Technologies for Energy Intensive Industries
I attended PMQs (Prime Ministers Questions) today in the Serjeant at Arms’ Private Box today which was pretty cool. Today’s debate was pretty heated around the questions relating to the revelations about the relaxing of UK boarder controls over the summer. Some of the resultant shouting lead to the speaker making reference to the youth parliament who had used the chamber the week before and had not behaved in the same way – I’m sure I heard a few MP’s groan at this comment…
Summary of Week One & Briefing Note Subject
As I’ve now had a week to settle into the fellowship I thought it would be a good time to post an update.
Firstly, I should mention that I’ve have now been given my topic title after a meeting of the POST Board. The board is made up of representatives of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords and also includes non-parliamentary members with scientific background (link below)
http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/offices/bicameral/post/board/
After various housekeeping issues were resolved the discussion focused on choosing mine and the other new/future fellows topics for their POST (briefing) notes. By far the favoured choice out of the available options for my POST note was.
‘Low Carbon Technologies for Energy Intensive Industries’
Given the recent policy implications of Carbon Floor Pricing and the Electricity Market reforms against the background of the Climate Change Levy and the EU Emissions Trading System it is a really interesting time to explore the existing and potential technologies available to industries as we move towards a low carbon economy.
After a week of research in the area (which is not related to the area of my thesis research, and so there has been a lot to read!) I’m very interested in speaking to people in Energy Intensive industries. So if you are reading this blog and have any suggestions of reports I can read, people I should be talking to or have any personal views or opinions please feel free to leave a comment below or contact me directly using my details, also below. One of the key parts of my research is the interviewing of stakeholders and I’m starting to draw up a list now.
So what’s Westminster like to work at one week in? The quick answer is that it is very strange! Passing about a dozen armed police on your way to the office and then passing through a ‘vacuum tube’ style door to get into the building – those familiar with the spooks TV show will know what I mean- really does take some getting used to. The Palace itself is a total maze of interlocking buildings as a result of various re-imaginings of its purpose as we have continually evolved from monarchy rule through a civil war and then ended up with the constitutional monarchy we have now – not to mention two fires and a direct hit during the blitz leading to much rebuilding. This has lead to some parts, such as Westminster Hall to have survived from 1097, whereas much of the facade we recognise as being ‘Westminster’ dates to the 1800s – I hope this proves I paid attention during my tour! Throughout the corridors there are various, and a large number of, meeting rooms and catering facilities (and bars) full of the public’s representatives in discussions. This is interspaced by the occasional dash to the chamber to vote once summoned by a loud alarm bell that sounds across the whole building. One thing I found very interesting is the right of any person to turn up to Westminster on the day, wait in line to pass through security, and then go to the desk outside the commons chamber and ask to see talk to your MP. At this point someone will be sent to find your MP wherever they are in the building and if they are not available someone will have to come down to speak to you and help you with your question. I thought it was a nice reminder of the accountability we have in our democracy.
So that’s it for now, and please if you have any advice for my briefing note, ‘Low Carbon Technologies for Energy Intensive Industries’ please get in touch!
Iwan
Tel: +44(0)20 7219 1861
Email: robertsi@parliament.uk
Delayed by One Week…
Sorry to all those people looking forward to reading the blog this week, but unfortunately my start date has been delayed by one week.
So please hang on for another week until I actually can start and I will be able to post my reseach topic.
Thanks
Iwan
What is the purpose of this Blog?
Welcome to my Blog!
On finding yourself here you’re probably wondering who I am, why I am writing a blog, and most importantly if it is worth taking a spare few minutes out your busy life as a Chemical Engineer to see if this guy has anything interesting to say?
First question first.
My name is Iwan and I’m about halfway through an engineering doctorate (EngD) in the Biochemical Engineering department at University College London. I found out IChemE combined with NEPIC were funding a 3 month fellowship at the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST) in memory of the late Ashok Kumar MP. This sounded like an interesting opportunity and so I jumped at it and successfully applied for the position.
The fellowship involves researching a current scientific issue related to Chemical Engineering, be it the hydrogen economy, or fracking, and then disseminating the current policy environment and scientific opinion into a POST note – in essence a highly abridged 2-4 page layman’s terms translation of the issue which is used to brief politicians.
Why am I writing a blog?
I currently have next to no idea about how science policy is created, and what I do know seems to involve incredibly complex interactions between committees and persons advising both houses and the PM. Thus I’m making the assumption (apologies for any offense caused) that I’m not the only one.
Therefore the intention of this blog is to document what I get up to day to day in researching my particular topic, imparting any insights I may have which I think I might help others to better understand the process on how policy is created.
Why should you read it?
Policy is an area I think it is fair to say most people see as a pretty dry topic, however the impact it can have on whole industries, such as the one us Chemical Engineers work in, can be of critical importance, ultimately impacting our livelihoods. I hope that those reading this blog over the next few months will gain a better understanding of how Westminster works and importantly if the time comes when you feel you need to have your say in the process you will have a better idea of how to make your voice heard and how the process works.
I’m also hoping to add some more personal observations on what life in Westminster is like as its traditions and culture must be quite unlike any other workplace – I hope you find them interesting.
I start the Fellowship on Monday, and I should find out my project on Tuesday. The Fellowship runs through till next Feb so please check back to see what I’m getting up to
Thanks
Iwan
Links:
IChemE
NEPIC
Ashok Kumar MP
http://www.icheme.org/media_centre/news/2010/2010/ashok%20kumar%20mp%201956-2010.aspx
Ashok Kumar Fellowship
http://www.icheme.org/careers/ashok%20kumar%20fellowship.aspx
