Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department plans to provide funding to help deliver the Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP) prototype fusion power plant by 2040.

Following machinery of government changes, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero is the sponsor department for the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) which is delivering the STEP programme.

The Government has committed £240 million towards the first phase of the STEP programme. Work to develop a detailed concept design is on track. The UKAEA is setting up UK Industrial Fusion Solutions Ltd (UKIFS), a special purpose vehicle that will develop and build the STEP prototype power plant. Early site development for STEP is already underway at West Burton, Nottinghamshire, to transform the site of a former coal-fired power station into a global hub for fusion innovation.