Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the cost of electricity relative to gas to support the adoption of low-carbon heating technologies, including heat pumps.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK has a particularly high residential electricity-to-gas price ratio compared with many European countries. Electricity prices do not reflect the lower wholesale cost of clean energy, making low-carbon technologies more expensive to run than fossil-fuel alternatives and reducing the attractiveness of heat pumps.
Over this Parliament, the Government will work relentlessly to translate cheaper clean-power wholesale costs into lower consumer bills, making this central to every decision.
We are closely considering the balance of costs recovered through energy bills and a range of options to deliver our priorities, while recognising the difficult fiscal environment.
Given the issue’s complexity, decisions will be informed by robust research and analysis, with fairness and affordability at the forefront throughout.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department plans to maintain the funding committed to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme through to 2029/30 following the Budget.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme has a budget of £400 million for this financial year (2026/27).
The Government does not comment on speculation ahead of fiscal events. Future Warm Homes Plan funding, including the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, is subject to decisions at future Budgets and Spending Reviews. The Chancellor will set out further details on spending later this month.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
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 impact of reducing or delaying Warm Homes Plan funding on the Government’s clean heat and energy efficiency ambitions.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has made clear the Warm Homes Plan remains a key part of its mission to cut energy bills, tackle fuel poverty, and strengthen energy security and is fully committed to delivering it.
The Plan involves a comprehensive set of funding and policies including the Warm Homes: Local Grant and Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund to support low-income households, and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme for all eligible households, where grants have recently been increased to £9,000 for homes heated by oil or LPG in response to the situation in the Middle East.
The Government also recently confirmed the Future Homes Standard, ensuring all new build homes will be thermally efficient and fitted with low carbon heating and solar panels as standard, and recently tabled proposals for major reform of the consumer protection system that underpins home retrofit.
The Government continues to work at pace behind the scenes to deliver on various other commitments in the Plan and will announce more details in due course.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will reform energy market regulations to enable community-run energy schemes to sell power directly to local households and businesses.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Local Power Plan published jointly by my Department and Great British Energy recognises the barriers community energy groups face in supplying their local energy markets and we are exploring measures to overcome these. The department is also closely monitoring Ofgem’s forthcoming decision on BSC code modification P441, which is intended to standardise how licence-exempt suppliers, such as eligible community energy groups and their partners, can register their schemes and sell energy to local households and businesses. Last month, GBE launched a £30 million of funding to support community groups and local authorities develop projects, including up to £2.9 million for advice services.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
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 engage with the Scottish Government on the inclusion of onshore wind in Scotland in the upcoming Strategic Spatial Energy Plan.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Strategic Spatial Energy Plan is being developed by the National Energy System Operator, following joint commissioning by the UK, Scottish and Welsh Governments. It will assess electricity generation and storage across Great Britain, including onshore wind in Scotland, as part of future energy infrastructure planning.
We are engaging with the Scottish Government through SSEP analytical, advisory groups, and official-level discussions. This enables views on Scottish energy priorities, planning, consenting, environmental issues and renewable deliverability to inform the process.
The Scottish Government will also be able to provide formal views before the Secretary of State decides on the preferred pathway.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
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 implications for its policies of analysis from Aurora Energy Research which notes that rebalancing a share of planned Scottish offshore wind towards Scottish onshore wind after 2030 as part of the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan would reduce energy system costs by £5 billion pounds a year.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The National Energy System Operator (NESO) is delivering the first Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP). This will consider the cost optimal types and locations of future energy infrastructure including onshore and offshore wind - whilst also factoring in environmental, societal, and other spatial interests.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
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 for empowering local authorities to assess flexibility and microgrid opportunities before pursuing network buildout, in the context of the recommendations in the ADE: Demand report entitled Powered by People, Powered by Place.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has noted the Association for Decentralised Energy's report, Powered by People, Powered by Place, and recognises the importance of local evidence in identifying flexibility and other opportunities before network investment decisions are made.
The Regional Energy Strategic Plans (RESPs) methodology, being developed by the National Energy System Operator, proposes bringing together local authorities and stakeholders to help provide a whole-energy and bottom-up view of how local energy systems need to evolve to meet local and national priorities. Distribution Network Operators would remain responsible for detailed network planning, including flexibility, microgrid opportunities and network investment, informed by RESP outputs.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to Regional Energy Strategic Plans, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the 10% voting share for demand-side stakeholders on Strategic Boards, as highlighted in the ADE: Demand report entitled Powered by People, Powered by Place.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Responsibility for the development of Regional Energy Strategic Planning (RESP) and the governance arrangements sits with the National Energy System Operator (NESO), under Ofgem’s policy framework and guidance.
Following their consultation, NESO is currently finalising the RESP methodology, which includes the voting share of the Strategic Boards. DESNZ Secretary of State and Ofgem is due to review and approve the methodology in due course.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the ADE: Demand report entitled Powered by People, Powered by Place, what assessment has his Department has made of the appropriateness of the exclusion of contracted consumer-led flexibility data from the data collection process informing National Energy System Operation modelling for Regional Energy Strategic Plans.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government has noted the Association for Decentralised Energy's report, Powered by People, Powered by Place.
The National Energy System Operator (NESO) will be developing Regional Energy Strategic Plans (RESPs) to support whole-system distribution-level planning across energy demand, supply, storage and flexibility. The aim is for flexibility to form part of a number of RESP outputs, including modelled Pathways and Strategic Investment Need. We are working with NESO on the RESP methodology, which will be published in due course.
The distribution networks will remain responsible for detailed network planning, including consideration of contracted flexibility alongside network investments.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
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 the timetable for auction being brought forward on large renewable projects that have had their Contracts for Difference AR8 supply chain plan statement confirmed.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Contracts for Difference Scheme (CfD) runs annually. For Allocation Round 8, the Government confirmed in March it would open the round in July (in AR7, the round opened in August). The Supply Chain Plan (SCP) process opened in April, with results now released to applicants. The government does not expect this year's timeline to have a substantial constraining impact on the available pipeline of renewable projects, however inevitably some projects will not be sufficiently progressed to meet the CfD entry criteria by the opening date and will need to look to future rounds should they wish to secure a CfD.