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 (a) the ability of Ofgem to effectively regulate prices of energy providers and (b) the potential merits of bringing all energy providers into public ownership.

The prices charged by energy providers are set by the market and are largely determined by the cost of internationally-traded electricity and gas. For default tariffs, where competition has less of an effect on price, Ofgem sets a price cap on suppliers, based on the efficient costs of supply. During its first year the default tariff price cap was estimated to have saved households £1 billion and continues to save consumers £75- £100 a year on average.

The Government sees competition as the best way of securing value and quality service for consumers. The number of domestic gas and electricity suppliers has increased from 10 in 2010 to around 50 now, and customers who switch can save up to £150 a year.