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 15 July 2026 to Question 16609 on Aviation: UK Emissions Trading Scheme, if she will publish the (a) low, (b) central and (c) high scenarios modelled for the impact of UK ETS allowance prices on the cost of domestic flights between 2026 and 2050.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department has not published and has no current plans to publish estimates of the impact of UK Emissions Trading Scheme allowance prices on the cost of UK domestic flights between 2026 and 2050.
As set out in the answer previously provided to the hon. Member, the Department publishes traded carbon values for modelling purposes, which provide scenario-based projections of future carbon prices rather than forecasts. Owing to the uncertainty associated with long-term carbon price projections and emissions, any estimates of future impacts on air fares would be subject to significant uncertainty.
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 July 2026 to Question 16636 on Department for Transport: Public Relations, how much was spent on 23rd's work on the Electric Vehicles campaign, and what services that expenditure covered.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The expenditure on 23red’s work for the Electric Vehicles campaign was met from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s budget for the Clean Energy Mission campaign. 23red is engaged primarily as a partnership agency supporting delivery of campaign partnerships and stakeholder engagement activity.
The Electric Vehicles campaign forms part of the wider cross-government Clean Energy communications programme to make the UK a clean energy superpower, which is led by DESNZ in partnership with the Department for Transport.
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 July 2026 to Question 16636 on Department for Transport: Public Relations, from which Department's budget the expenditure on 23red's work for the Electric Vehicles campaign was met.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The expenditure on 23red’s work for the Electric Vehicles campaign was met from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s budget for the Clean Energy Mission campaign. 23red is engaged primarily as a partnership agency supporting delivery of campaign partnerships and stakeholder engagement activity.
The Electric Vehicles campaign forms part of the wider cross-government Clean Energy communications programme to make the UK a clean energy superpower, which is led by DESNZ in partnership with the Department for Transport.
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 her Department has made of the potential impact of the extension of the UK Emissions Trading Scheme to maritime on defence manufacturing businesses on the Isle of Wight.
Answered by Blair McDougall - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade) (Jointly with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK Emissions Trading Scheme expanded to include maritime emissions earlier this year.
The Scheme applies to ship owners and operators, who are responsible for monitoring and reporting emissions from in-scope activities and surrendering allowances.
This expansion does not place obligations on manufacturing businesses, including those in the defence sector.
An Impact Assessment was published on 25 November 2025.
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 criteria her Department will use to determine whether Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage at Drax represents value for money.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
No final decisions around the deployment of large-scale BECCS projects have been made. Any potential projects must go through due process in a CCUS allocation round including eligibility checks, assessment, and due diligence ahead of any project-specific decisions.
If government decides to explore a support agreement with any generator to enable its conversion to power BECCS, we will examine their costs and projected revenues in detail to determine what would be a proportionate and justified arrangement that provides value for money for consumers.
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 criteria she will use when considering requests by Drax Power Station to supply electricity directly to data centres under future support arrangements.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The low-carbon dispatchable Contract for Difference (LCD CfD) signed with Drax Power Station for the period 2027-31 contains a provision for the generator to request the ability to provide up to 500MW of power to a data centre via a private wire.
The Government, in conjunction with the Low Carbon Contracts Company as the CfD counterparty, will assess any such request against criteria that take account of energy security, affordability and sustainability, to ensure that any decision is in the interests of the consumer.
All power generated by Drax during this period – whether for the grid or a data centre – must use fuel which complies with the strengthened sustainability criteria set out in the LCD CfD.
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 information arising from the Drax whistleblower case has informed the development of future biomass sustainability monitoring and reporting requirements.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government keeps arrangements for assuring compliance with biomass sustainability requirements under review and is committed to a process of continuous improvement in biomass sustainability standards, compliance, and verification.
This includes considering lessons from Ofgem’s extensive 2024 investigation into Drax’s sustainability reporting and the recently completed global audit of Drax’s biomass supply chain which Ofgem required Drax to conduct and fund. Reporting and verification arrangements have been strengthened under the new contract with Drax from 2027-31, including enhanced audit rights for the Low Carbon Contracts Company.
These lessons will also inform the forthcoming Common Biomass Sustainability Framework, which will strengthen sustainability criteria and ensure greater consistency across sectors in the longer term.
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 any review has been undertaken of biomass sustainability verification procedures following allegations raised in the Drax whistleblower case.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government keeps arrangements for assuring compliance with biomass sustainability requirements under review and is committed to a process of continuous improvement in biomass sustainability standards, compliance, and verification.
This includes considering lessons from Ofgem’s extensive 2024 investigation into Drax’s sustainability reporting and the recently completed global audit of Drax’s biomass supply chain which Ofgem required Drax to conduct and fund. Reporting and verification arrangements have been strengthened under the new contract with Drax from 2027-31, including enhanced audit rights for the Low Carbon Contracts Company.
These lessons will also inform the forthcoming Common Biomass Sustainability Framework, which will strengthen sustainability criteria and ensure greater consistency across sectors in the longer term.
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 he made of requiring the structural steel used in the Net Zero Teesside carbon capture, utilisation and storage project to be (a) produced and (b) fabricated in the UK.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government knows it is important to communities across the country that we use UK-made steel. We are ambitious about increasing the use of UK made steel in UK energy and infrastructure projects where possible.
Net Zero Teesside is not a public procurement (so public procurement guidelines do not apply) but we have spoken to the project developer to understand more about the use of UK and non-UK steel, as well as the wider use of UK local content, in the project. They confirmed their voluntary commitment to achieve more than 50% UK content across the value chain, with around ÂŁ1.5 billion UK-based sub-contracts already awarded.
We want to champion UK steelmaking and our steel communities now and for generations to come and my colleagues at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero are looking at how greater UK content will be used in future projects.
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 estimate has been made of the potential cost impact of the UK ETS and domestic carbon pricing mechanisms on the cost of UK domestic flights between 2026 and 2050.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Due to uncertainty surrounding both future emissions and carbon prices, the Government has not produced an estimate of the potential impact of the UK ETS on the cost of domestic flights between 2026 and 2050. The costs faced by aircraft operators will depend on the level of emissions covered by the UK ETS and the future price of UK ETS allowances. DESNZ publishes traded carbon values for modelling purposes, which provide scenario-based projections of future carbon prices rather than forecasts. As uncertainty increases over longer time horizons, any estimates of future UK ETS costs should be treated with caution.