Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support (a) consumers and (b) businesses in South Holland and the Deepings constituency with (1) petrol and (2) diesel costs.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is committed to ensuring fair fuel prices for consumers and businesses. Following the Competition and Markets Authority’s 2023 Road Fuel Market Study, we introduced statutory powers under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 to monitor pricing and identify anti-competitive behaviour in the fuel market. We are also implementing Fuel Finder, an open data scheme providing real-time petrol and diesel prices to improve transparency and competition, helping drivers and businesses find the best deals. These measures aim to reduce costs and protect consumer interests across the UK, including South Holland and The Deepings.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many and what proportion of civil servants in his Department are (a) on temporary contract and (b) consultants.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Information on the number of civil servants employed on temporary contracts is published quarterly by the Office for National Statistics as part of the quarterly Public Sector Employment statistics. Information can be accessed for September 2025 at the following web address:
Departmental expenditure on consultancy is published within the Annual Report and Accounts. The latest report for FY 2024/25 can be found at the following web address:
DESNZ annual report and accounts 2024 to 2025 - GOV.UK
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many full time equivalent staff in his Department have been employed for the purpose of making social media content in each of the past three years.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In 2023 there were 4.6 full time equivalent staff.
In 2024 there were 9.3.
In 2025 there were 9.3.
The number is lower for 2023 as the department was new and still recruiting.
While these staff members have social media content creation as part of their role, they deliver a range of services beyond this - from branding for new agencies to training videos for staff. Having the resource to do this work in-house is cheaper than outsourcing to agencies with taxpayer funds.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of recent trends in levels of (a) petrol and (b) diesel prices in Lincolnshire.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Fuel price trends are monitored nationally and published in the Department’s weekly statistics on GOV.UK. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) oversee market transparency and compliance and publish quarterly and yearly reports on GOV.UK.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to ensure that people in Lincolnshire can access competitive fuel prices through the Fuel Finder scheme.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Motor Fuel Price (Open Data) Regulations 2025 were debated in the House of Commons on 4 November 2025 and the House of Lords on 4 December 2025. The Regulations should be in place from 18 December 2025.
Once launched, our analysis suggests that households who own a car could save an average of around £40 a year.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
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 reduce energy bills for (a) households and (b) businesses in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The affordability crisis is the biggest issue facing this country. That is why the Autumn Budget acted to take £150 of costs off people’s energy bills. This support comes on top of the £150 off energy bills provided for around 6 million families under the Warm Home Discount this winter, cutting fuel poverty. We’re also driving forward with home upgrades, with £1.5 billion increased capital in this Budget for our Warm Homes Plan.
This Government is tackling energy costs at every avenue, to drive growth. This builds on our Modern Industrial Strategy, which is slashing industrial energy bills by up to £420million for electricity-intensive businesses and will cut costs for 7,000 more businesses in 2027.
We are repairing a broken energy system. Funding more of the investment we need from public spending is the right and progressive thing to do and takes pressure off bills.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how much OFGEM has spent on translation and interpretation services in each of the last five years.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Ofgem has compiled and shared the following information with the Department:
Financial year Spend (£) (nominal)
20/21 3,790.00
21/22 6,840.00
22/23 3,348.35
24/25 2,260.80
25/26 (to date) 7,214.28
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will list the titles of all the events organised by Civil Service networks in his Department since 2023.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
DESNZ values the work our Staff Networks do to support and include colleagues. All DESNZ Staff Network events are in line with cross-Government guidance and signed-off by relevant officials. Civil Service Networks operate across the whole of Government. We do not keep a record of Civil Service Network events.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many (a) single sex and (b) gender neutral bathroom facilities his Department provides in its premises.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department is a customer of the Government Property Agency in its office locations, and does not hold a record of the number of single-sex or gender-neutral bathroom facilities provided there.