Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to (a) remove potential barriers to local communities from setting up new community renewable energy projects and (b) increase the number of new community renewable energy projects in the UK.

Ofgem supports community energy projects and welcomes applications from community interest groups, co-operative societies, and community benefit societies to the Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme.

The Government is enabling local areas to tackle net zero goals through UK-wide growth funding schemes. The Government encourages community energy groups to work closely with their local authority to support the development of community energy projects within these schemes.

The Government has also reintroduced the Community Energy Contact Group to strengthen its engagement with the sector.