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 promote (a) co-operative and (b) mutual energy start-up businesses.

The Government wants a fully working, competitive market that is innovative, adaptive and flourishing and continues to promote competition as the best driver of value and service for customers.

Ofgem’s approach to licensing aims to enable entry into the retail market of new companies with innovative offers or business models, whilst ensuring all firms provide consumers with a robust and reliable service. Where regulation prevents the launch of a product, Ofgem’s Regulatory Sandbox can enable trials, without some of the usual rules applying.

Ofgem’s approach applies equally to privately owned, co-operative and mutual energy start-up businesses.