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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the impact of Government policies on achieving net zero on the cost of energy for the poorest households.

In the Net Zero Strategy, the Government set out four key principles of Net Zero Fairness including ensuring that the most vulnerable are supported by Government during the energy transition.

In the Sustainable Warmth Competition, published in February 2021, the Government outlined its approach to tackling fuel poverty in England. It also recognised that improving the energy efficiency of homes is the most effective way of permanently reducing consumer energy bills and tackling fuel poverty in the long term. The Government is providing £3 billion of funding over this Parliament for low carbon heating and energy efficiency measures to those who need it most. Examples of these schemes include the Local Authority Delivery scheme, the Home Upgrade Grant and the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund.

The Government is also consulting on expanding the Energy Company Obligation Scheme to £1 billion a year from April 2022. This will help an extra 305,000 families with green measures such as insulation and heating, with average energy bill savings of around £290 a year.