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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of Northern Ireland remaining in the Single Electricity Market on the UK's membership of the European Court of Justice.

Maintaining security of electricity supply in Northern Ireland is a priority for this Government. We have undertaken significant work, and prepared legislation, in order to ensure that technical, operational and legal arrangements are in place to seek to maintain the Single Electricity Market whatever the circumstances. We recognise the need to have in place a common set of rules across the Single Electricity Market that govern the arrangement. The exact nature of these is still to be agreed as part of the negotiations.

Once the UK leaves the EU it will no longer participate in or contribute to the EU institutions including the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). Only Member States of the EU can nominate candidates to be appointed as judges in the CJEU.