Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the role of Ofcom in incentivising decarbonisation through the award of radio spectrum to energy network operators; and whether officials in his Department have (a) met and (b) plan to meet representatives of UK energy network operators to discuss the allocation of radio spectrum to accelerate decarbonisation of the UK energy system.

This Government is committed to reaching our net zero targets. Our Nationally Determined Contribution to cut emissions by 78% by 2035 is the most ambitious in the world. Harnessing the potential of spectrum will be crucial to helping us do this.

Ofcom is responsible for managing and authorising spectrum use and DCMS will continue to work with Ofcom on the potential allocation of spectrum to energy networks and other users so as to help us reach our net zero targets.

As outlined in its Plan of Work 21/22, Ofcom is reviewing the role of spectrum in supporting energy distribution networks to meet Government targets on carbon neutrality and manage new distribution models. Ofcom is working with energy operators and other stakeholders in the sector to understand future spectrum requirements, and closely follows the progress of other international spectrum regulators in enabling smart grids.

DCMS Officials have attended industry-led events regarding the allocation of radio spectrum to the energy network operators and have met with representatives from the Strategic Telecoms Group of the Energy Networks Association (ENA) and the Joint Radio Company (JRC), a joint venture between the ENA and National Grid, to discuss the radio spectrum needs of the UK gas and electricity network operators. DCMS is also in close contact with BEIS on this issue.

The Government will continue to work with Ofcom and other key stakeholders to help find a suitable, sustainable spectrum solution for energy networks.