Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 18 February 2026 to Question 112225, whether he has made an estimate of the level of passthrough to consumers as a (a) cost increase per passenger ticket and (b) percentage increase in fares.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As set out in the Impact Assessment, any passthrough to consumers is expected to be modest. International evidence, including from the EU ETS, shows fare changes have generally been in the low single digit range.
The Government has not undertaken route level ferry fare or passenger ticket modelling for the UK ETS domestic maritime expansion, as operators’ commercial decisions, vessel utilisation and fare structures vary widely.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
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 impact of voltage reduction technologies installed in homes on household energy bills.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The effect of voltage reduction on consumer bills varies between appliances. For appliances that are power controlled (including most electronics, LED lighting, EV chargers and heat pumps), lowering the voltage does not reduce energy consumption and reduce consumer bills. For appliances that are resistive (electric heaters, filament lights), the devices work less well at lower voltages and the effect on consumer bills depends on the consumer’s response to this reduction in performance (e.g. by switching on more heating or lighting).
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 2 March 2026 to Question 114111, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of centrally collecting data on the procurement of retread and single-use imported tyres for heavy vehicle fleets for his Department and its arms length bodies; and if he will make it his policy to introduce arrangements to do so.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
No such assessment has been made.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department has considered reinstating voltage optimisation technologies in the Energy Saving Materials framework.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
DESNZ has not considered reinstating voltage optimisation technologies in the Energy Saving Materials framework due to limitations in the performance of the technology. Voltage optimisers work by reducing the voltage to close to the lower permitted limit of 216.2V. Devices such as electric fires and incandescent lamps lower their energy consumption at lower voltages but also work less well – being less effective at heating or lighting. Power controlled devices such as LED lighting, heat pumps and electric vehicle chargers do not lower their energy consumption, and for these, voltage optimisers are ineffective.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 2 March 2026 to Question 115442, what his evidential basis is that linking the UK Emissions Trading Scheme with the EU Emissions Trading Scheme will minimise administrative burdens for operators and support economic growth and decarbonisation.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Linking the UK and EU emissions trading schemes is expected to bring significant economic benefits to the UK, including a cheaper path towards decarbonisation by providing businesses with access to a larger, more stable and liquid carbon market which will help support investment in low-carbon technologies.
Linking would also lower costs and lower barriers to trade for UK businesses by creating the conditions for mutual CBAM exemptions.
Consultation responses from maritime stakeholders have largely supported alignment of requirements across the two schemes to reduce the administrative burden for operators participating in both schemes.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2026 to Question 102835, under what conditions would a contract be terminated.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Where the generator is found to be non‑compliant with the conditions of public support, enforcement action is available, including the withholding of subsidy and contract termination. The Low Carbon Dispatchable Contract for Difference (LCD CfD) contains various rights of termination for the contract Counterparty (LCCC) in the event the Generator (Drax) breaches key obligations. This includes the ability to terminate the CfD in the event of repeated and material breaches of the sustainability requirements. For the full text setting out the LCD CfD Termination rights, see Termination - Part 12 (p.186) here: Low Carbon Dispatchable Contracts for Difference Terms and Conditions - Low Carbon Contracts. Any such action would be taken on the basis of evidence and in line with the relevant statutory and contractual frameworks.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what information their Department holds on (a) the proportion of tyres procured that were re-tread tyres for (i) Department-operated and (ii) commercially contracted heavy vehicle fleets, including lorries, buses and refuse vehicles and (b) the volume of tyres procured for those fleets that were single-use imported tyres in the last 12 months; and whether such information is held centrally or by individual contractors.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero does not hold the information requested by the Rt hon Member.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 5 February 2026 to Question 110095, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the absence of route-level ferry fare modelling risks on consumer price impacts for ferry-dependent communities.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has not undertaken route level ferry fare modelling for the UK ETS domestic maritime expansion. This is because, as we set out in the Impact Assessment, operators’ commercial decisions, vessel utilisation and fare structures vary widely. The qualitative assessment indicates that any passthrough to consumers is likely to be modest.
The Government will review the maritime element of the UK ETS in 2028 with further consideration of regional or distributional impacts.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 5 February 2026 to Question 110095, whether the Department plans to publish route-specific or island impact assessments before domestic maritime is brought into scope of the UK ETS in 2026.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Impact Assessment set out that it is not possible to robustly break down compliance costs to the level of individual routes or service types, as ticket prices, fare structures and commercial operating decisions vary widely. The Assessment therefore considers impacts at the sector and scheme level.
The Authority consulted extensively with all operators, including those serving island mainland and shortsea routes, to ensure all perspectives informed policy development.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department provides (a) funding and (b) any other support for increasing (i) grid capacity and (ii) enabling electrification at the Port of Southampton.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Maritime Decarbonisation Strategy, published in March 2025, sets out domestic goals and commitments to decarbonise maritime transport, and a call for evidence on Net Zero Ports was launched to assess future energy demand at ports such as Southampton and Portsmouth International.
While the Government does not directly fund increases in electricity network capacity, we support Ofgem in their work to incentivise electricity network companies to invest strategically, ensuring plans reflect emerging demands from electrifying sectors. Through the UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions, Portsmouth International Port received nearly £20m of R&D funding to support a shore power trial.