Asked by: Jo Gideon (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the proportion of households that are (a) dual fuel, (b) connected to mains gas only and (c) connected to mains electricity only.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
The latest official Fuel Poverty Statistics for England were published in February 2023 on gov.uk here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fuel-poverty-statistics#2022-Statistics
In England in 2022, 85 per cent of all households were connected to both mains gas and electricity, with 15 per cent of households connected to mains electricity only. Of the households which were not connected to the gas grid an estimated 653 thousand households were fuel poor.
Asked by: Jo Gideon (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the added cost of (a) environmental and (b) social obligations on (i) electricity and (ii) gas bills to the average household in 2023.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
Ofgem, the energy regulator in Great Britain, administers renewable energy and social schemes on behalf of the Government and ensures that policy targets are met in an economical and consumer conscious way. A list of the current environmental and social schemes that are funded through households and business energy bills can be found on their website: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-and-social-schemes.
Asked by: Jo Gideon (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the number of households connected to mains electricity only that are in fuel poverty.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
The latest official Fuel Poverty Statistics for England were published in February 2023 on gov.uk here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fuel-poverty-statistics#2022-Statistics
In England in 2022, 85 per cent of all households were connected to both mains gas and electricity, with 15 per cent of households connected to mains electricity only. Of the households which were not connected to the gas grid an estimated 653 thousand households were fuel poor.
Asked by: Jo Gideon (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure energy companies allow business customers who agreed energy contracts in 2022 to renegotiate those contracts to reflect the lower wholesale prices now available.
Answered by Amanda Solloway
The Government has implemented the Energy Bills Discount Scheme (EBDS) to take effect until April 2024. Businesses fixed into more costly long-term contracts are more likely to receive EBDS support due to how the baseline discount is calculated. Contract negotiations are ultimately a matter for suppliers and their customers, but the Government continues to work with Ofgem and energy suppliers to ensure they are doing all they can to support their customers.