Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment her Department has made of the number of UK households without connection to the electricity grid.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The government does not publish a regular assessment of the number of UK households without a connection to the electricity grid. However, the Energy Bills Support Scheme Impact Assessment estimated that around 500 to 2,000 energy consumers were living off grid.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what comparative assessment has the Government made of the effectiveness of the application of VAT to first-time electricity mains connections for existing occupied residential properties that have never previously been connected to the electricity network, with first-time connections for qualifying new residential developments being eligible for zero-rating.

Answered by James Murray - Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General

The Government does not hold VAT specific data on the number of properties affected by these different VAT treatments, nor does it hold information on connection costs that would enable the VAT involved to be readily estimated.

Found: an evidence doc looking at the impact of loss of BPS; produced by Dr Alison Holt of NCS and Prof Joe Morris