Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent estimate his Department has made of the amount of community benefits paid to a) the United Kingdom, b) Scotland and c) the Scottish Highlands in 2025.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Oral Question of 24th March 2026, what steps his Department is taking to introduce a trial for free wind power for people living near energy infrastructure.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In line with statements made to Parliament on 24th March 2026, the Department is working with UKRI to launch a trial this winter.
The trial will test the removal of final consumption levies from increased consumer demand that responds to instances where there is abundant local renewable energy in grid constrained areas.
This will enable energy suppliers and flexibility service providers to offer periods of discounted power to households and businesses in such areas so that more of this power can be used.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the total (a) energy and (b) water demands of all proposed AI data centres.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department’s published Energy and Emissions Projections include growth in power demand from computing services like data centres. To ensure a comprehensive view, the methodology projects at a broader sector level, not disaggregating specific estimates for data centres.
Water use comes under the remit of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Its Water Delivery Taskforce is building an evidence base of data centre water use across England. The Government encourages data centre developers to consider use of non-potable water, embed water efficiency or reuse in design, and contact their proposed water and wastewater supplier early in the planning process.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to ensure transparency from AI companies on the level of their energy usage.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Large AI companies in the UK must report energy and carbon use under The Streamlined Energy & Carbon Reporting (SECR) framework. Many companies also voluntarily report their Power Utilisation Effectiveness, which is the industry standard measure of efficiency of a data centre. Government is assessing the relevant technologies and metrics involved in its drive towards building a sustainable energy system as part of the AI Energy Council.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what guidance Ofgem provides to electricity network operators on timescales for rectifying infrastructure found to be operating above permitted noise levels.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Noise from electricity network infrastructure is not regulated by Ofgem. Ofgem’s remit covers the economic regulation of network operators and the protection of consumers.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions his Department has had with Ofgem on the enforcement of noise standards for electricity transmission infrastructure.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Noise from electricity network infrastructure is not regulated by Ofgem. Ofgem’s remit covers the economic regulation of network operators and the protection of consumers.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what guidance his Department provides on escalation mechanisms available to communities where an electricity network operator has acknowledged non-compliance with permitted noise levels but remediation has not been delivered.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
For operational infrastructure, in England and Wales any noise concerns should be raised to local planning authorities in line with the Environmental Protection Act 1990. You can report an noise nuisance via: Report a noise nuisance to your council - GOV.UK. For Scotland, powers in this act relating to noise and statutory nuisance are devolved to Scottish Government.
In England and Wales where a project meets the threshold for an Environmental Impact Assessment, developers are required to assess and mitigate noise impacts. They are similarly required to do so at the planning stage in accordance with the National Policy Statement EN‑5 and the National Planning Policy Framework.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Scottish Government on its public consultation on Community Benefits which ended in April 2025.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government engages regularly with the Scottish Government regarding community benefits.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions his Department has had with the Scottish Government on community benefit expectations for renewable energy developments, including the real-terms value of the £5,000 per installed megawatt per year figure referenced in Scottish Government guidance published in 2014.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As the government explores options for community benefits, we have engaged with stakeholders across Great Britain, including the Scottish and Welsh Governments.
Asked by: Angus MacDonald (Liberal Democrat - Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what progress his Department has made since the publication of the working paper Community benefits and shared ownership for low carbon energy infrastructure on 21 May 2025.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The government is in the process of reviewing responses and intends to publish a response setting out our next steps in due course.