Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what consideration has been given to aligning the statutory powers available to electricity network operators for land access with those available to water and telecoms utilities, to ensure timely and cost-effective delivery of network upgrades.

DESNZ has worked closely with stakeholders to understand the extent to which current land access, rights and consents processes delay and add costs to rollout of electricity network infrastructure required for delivering clean power by 2030 and accelerating the UK’s transition to Net zero.

This has included looking at where there might be opportunities to learn from approaches to other utilities.

Government’s assessment was set out in a consultation in Summer 2025 on proposed reforms to these processes. We expect to publish the response in the coming quarter.