Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of (a) the adequacy of the technology selected by the Data Communications Company for the North of England smart meter rollout and (b) the potential impact on meeting installation targets.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The DCC is obligated to provide WAN coverage to 99.5% of premises across its ‘North’ region, which includes the North of England. After consultation with industry, energy suppliers can now install 4G cellular smart meter communication hubs across the whole of GB. 4G will operate in the North alongside long-range radio communications for smart meters, offering suppliers an additional option for connectivity. Additionally, a new solution using consumers’ broadband connections, with consumer consent, in areas still with no WAN coverage will be piloted early next year, with a wider rollout expected later in 2026.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the proportion of households in the North of England that are unable to connect to the Data Communications Company smart meter network; and what steps he has taken to improve coverage in rural and hard-to-reach locations.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The DCC is obligated to provide WAN coverage to 99.5% of premises across its ‘North’ region, which includes the North of England. After consultation with industry, energy suppliers can now install 4G cellular smart meter communication hubs across the whole of GB. 4G will operate in the North alongside long-range radio communications for smart meters, offering suppliers an additional option for connectivity. Additionally, a new solution using consumers’ broadband connections, with consumer consent, in areas still with no WAN coverage will be piloted early next year, with a wider rollout expected later in 2026.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the number of homes in each region where installed smart meters remain non-functional due to lack of network connection.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department does not hold separate figures on the number of homes with smart meters not sending automatic readings due to lack of Wide Area Network (WAN) signal. The Data Communications Company (DCC) is obligated to provide WAN coverage to 99.25% of premises across GB, with a broadband solution (with consumer consent) soon to become available that will reach more of the premises currently without WAN signal.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what plans his Department has to review the contractual and regulatory obligations of the Data Communications Company in relation to improving smart meter network connectivity in the North of England.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The DCC is required by licence conditions to seek to provide coverage to all premises where it is practicable and cost proportionate, and to assess opportunities to increase the overall level of coverage. Ofgem is responsible for regulating the DCC against its obligations.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what engagement his Department has had with (a) Ofgem and (b) the Data Communications Company to ensure that households unable to connect to the smart meter network are not excluded from competitive tariffs or financially disadvantaged.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department regularly engages with Ofgem and the Data Communications Company on the smart metering programme. The DCC is obligated to provide WAN coverage to 99.25% of premises across GB and required by licence conditions to seek to provide coverage to all premises where it is practicable and cost proportionate, and to assess opportunities to increase the overall level of coverage. DCC has introduced 4G smart metering communications across GB and is working on a new solution to enable consumer broadband connections (with consumer consent) to carry smart metering communications in this context.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
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 employees in the oil and gas industry in England have adequate skills to find new employment.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We will shortly be publishing a clean energy workforce strategy which will set out our approach to upskilling and reskilling the workforce into clean energy roles through initiatives including the Energy Skills Passport, in collaboration with industry, which is helping oil and gas workers to identify routes into roles in offshore wind including construction and maintenance.
The skills system is delivering training for existing workers looking to retrain or upskill into clean energy. Support includes the announcement of 10 Technical Excellence Colleges for construction, which will transform existing further education colleges to deliver the skills needed for growth-driving sectors like clean energy; the Growth and Skills levy to deliver greater flexibility for learners and employers in England; and Skill Bootcamps to address the need for clean energy skills where this reflects regional priorities.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of net zero policies on employment in the oil and gas sector in England.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The North Sea basin is super-mature, and production is in natural decline. Oil and gas production fell by 72% between 1999 and 2023. Direct jobs in oil and gas extraction fell by around a third between 2014 and 2023.
The clean energy transition creates an opportunity for our expert oil and gas sector to play a central role in the future of energy supply.
Robert Gordon University estimates that the renewables workforce could grow from 39,000 in 2024 to 84,000-153,000 by 2035, subject to realised deployment across those technologies and proportion of UK content delivered by the domestic supply chain.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, for what reason the Oil and Gas Transition Training Fund is restricted to Scottish residents; and whether he plans to extend that scheme to workers in England.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Office for Clean Energy Jobs is funding targeted Regional Skills Pilots across the UK which will address skill gaps in a limited number of places which have been identified as priority areas for clean energy, including Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.
The Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire pilot, the Oil and Gas Transition Training Fund, is being delivered in partnership between UK Government, Scottish Government and Skills Development Scotland. This is a targeted pilot for workers in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.
Pilots are also running in Cheshire West and Chester, North and North East Lincolnshire and Pembrokeshire, with local and devolved partners empowered to develop their own plans for how best to target the funding. The Department will publish a Clean Energy Workforce Strategy setting out our approach to creating good jobs across the country.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what (a) funding and (b) retraining support is available for oil and gas workers in England impacted by the transition to renewable energy.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We will shortly be publishing a Clean Energy Workforce Strategy which will set out our approach to upskilling and reskilling the workforce into clean energy roles through initiatives including the Energy Skills Passport, in collaboration with industry, which is helping oil and gas workers to identify routes into roles in offshore wind including construction and maintenance.
The skills system is delivering training for existing workers looking to retrain or upskill into clean energy. Support includes the announcement of 10 Technical Excellence Colleges for construction, which will transform existing further education colleges to deliver the skills needed for growth-driving sectors like clean energy; the Growth and Skills levy to deliver greater flexibility for learners and employers in England; and Skill Bootcamps to address the need for clean energy skills where this reflects regional priorities.
Asked by: Matt Vickers (Conservative - Stockton West)
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 employers in the oil and gas sector in England on (a) skills transition and (b) workforce retention.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department (DESNZ) established the Office for Clean Energy Jobs (OCEJ) to engage industry and employers on skills needs and challenges. In partnership with Skills England, it leads workforce planning by identifying skills gaps and supporting reskilling.
DESNZ consulted with all stakeholders, including employers on ‘Building the North Sea’s Energy Future’. It included questions on supporting the oil and gas workforce to transition to clean energy sectors. A Government response will be published in due course.
These engagements have informed recent initiatives, including the Energy Skills Passport, the Oil and Gas Transition Training Fund pilot in Aberdeen, and the training guarantee for at-risk workers at Petroineos and Prax oil refineries.