Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of the Office for Gas and Electricity Markets moving to weekly budget monitoring of the Green Gas Support Scheme, in the context of levels of funding for the sector in recent years.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As the administrator of the Green Gas Support Scheme (GGSS), Ofgem is responsible for operational matters. Under regulation 4(14) of the GGSS regulations, Ofgem has a statutory duty to publish aggregate information relating to (but not limited to) applications, registrations, and budget on a quarterly basis.
From 8 June 2026, Ofgem has updated their website with both allocated and remaining GGSS budget on a weekly basis, providing prospective applicants with up-to-date information.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what the cumulative capacity of applications now queued by Ofgem is in relation to the Green Gas Support Scheme since the scheme reached its budget cap.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As of 2 September 2026, there are 15 tariff guarantee applications in the budget queue (https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-and-social-schemes/green-gas-support-scheme-and-green-gas-levy/applicants) and these have a combined maximum initial capacity of 199,285,200 m3. This is subject to change based on ongoing queue movement and there may be recent applications currently under review which have not yet been allocated budget or entered the budget queue.
In line with regulations, the Department will publish the GGSS budgets and corresponding levy rate by 31 December for the following scheme year.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate she has made of the future budget of the Green Gas Support Scheme.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As of 2 September 2026, there are 15 tariff guarantee applications in the budget queue (https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-and-social-schemes/green-gas-support-scheme-and-green-gas-levy/applicants) and these have a combined maximum initial capacity of 199,285,200 m3. This is subject to change based on ongoing queue movement and there may be recent applications currently under review which have not yet been allocated budget or entered the budget queue.
In line with regulations, the Department will publish the GGSS budgets and corresponding levy rate by 31 December for the following scheme year.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the contribution of domestic green gas production to UK energy security.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government recognises that domestically produced biomethane can strengthen energy resilience by displacing imported gas with a low-carbon alternative and reducing exposure to volatile international gas markets. The latest Department data shows that 5.8 TWh of biomethane was injected into the UK gas grid in 2025, equal to about 1% of natural gas demand (Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES) 2026 Chapter 4).
The Biomass Strategy 2023 set out that 30 â 40 TWh of biomethane production in 2050 could support a cost-effective route to net zero. It could also play an important role in reducing future reliance on imported gas.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when the Government plans to proceed with the zero rating of biomethane on the UK ETS.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government recognises biomethane as a practical and cost-effective way of contributing to net zero greenhouse gas emissions. The UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) applies a zero emissions factor to combustion of biomethane where supplied directly to ETS installations. Where biomethane is injected into the gas grid, there is not currently a mechanism in the UK ETS to ensure biomethane is accounted for separately.
The UK ETS Authority is considering whether and how the Scheme could account for biomethane injected into the gas grid and will provide an update in due course.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what consideration she has made of the potential merits of extending the Green Gas Support Scheme to new applications beyond 2028.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The GGSS budget is set to balance delivery of the intended benefits of biomethane with affordability for bill payers. In the context of the original budget envelope for the Green Gas Support Scheme being fully allocated, we are carefully considering our approach to budget setting for the GGSS, including the case for supporting new applications from 1 April 2028.
The Department is aware of the need to provide certainty on this as soon as possible.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of NESO Future Energy Scenarios' ambition of achieving 30TWh of domestic renewable gas production by 2035.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department is aware of a range of evidence showing that increasing biomethane deployment is a cost-effective route to delivering net zero, whilst also offering wider system benefits, such as waste management. This includes the Biomass Strategy 2023 estimate of 30-40TWh of biomethane production in 2050.
The Department is carefully considering this evidence to inform future support for the biomethane sector.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of reports by the Green Gas Taskforce, the Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association and others, that the most cost-effective route to net zero requires increases in the production of biomethane in the coming years.
Answered by Katie White - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department is aware of a range of evidence showing that increasing biomethane deployment is a cost-effective route to delivering net zero, whilst also offering wider system benefits, such as waste management. This includes the Biomass Strategy 2023 estimate of 30-40TWh of biomethane production in 2050.
The Department is carefully considering this evidence to inform future support for the biomethane sector.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
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 the potential impact of battery enabled boilers could make on decarbonising domestic heating in smaller homes.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Heat batteries, sometimes referred to as âbattery enabled boilersâ, can utilise time-of-use tariffs and do not require outside space; however, they are less efficient than heat pumps. Heat batteries could meet the needs of some smaller homes, however if they do not have sufficient storage capacity they could draw electricity at peak times, adding burden on the electricity network and increasing energy bills.
Government will continue to review our position on heat batteries, as the supporting evidence base develops, including considering evidence from the Homes for Net Zero project.
Asked by: Josh Newbury (Labour - Cannock Chase)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what proportion of vehicles rented by his Department are electric vehicles.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
In FY24-25, DESNZ had 149 hires, including 6 electric vehicles. The data for FY25-26 to date is not yet available.
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero was formed in February 2023, therefore there is no data for DESNZ prior to that date. Additionally, for FY23-24 the car hire contract used was still under DESNZâs predecessor department, Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), and all bookings were assigned to BEIS cost centres. It is not possible to determine which of these hires related to DESNZ.