Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the Autumn Budget 2026 and the Defence Investment Plan, what capital reallocation she has agreed for her Department for each year of the spending review period, and whether projects have been cancelled as a result.

DESNZ is reprioritising its budget to contribute towards the Defence Investment Plan. The government is prioritising delivery of mature carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) and hydrogen projects at the Teesside, Merseyside and North Wales clusters, maintaining grant funding for the Viking cluster while exploring progressing projects in development through private investment and government loan or equity investments, subject to approval. This will save £200 million capital grant from CCUS and £500 million from hydrogen. The government will also save £1 billion capital grant from the Warm Homes Plan (WHP). The government remains committed to heat pump deployment and will maintain the Boiler Upgrade Scheme at current funding levels of £400 million in 2027-28 and rising broadly in line with inflation thereafter. The government has also launched the Warm Homes Loan Scheme to support heat pump and clean technology uptake. The majority of WHP funding for low-income households and social housing, delivered by mayors and councils, is protected. After a £200-million saving, Great British Energy (GBE) and GBE-N retain £8.3 billion across the spending review period.

The government is actively looking at how loan or equity investments can support the continued development of future CCUS and hydrogen projects this Parliament, including for the Acorn Cluster, while ensuring a return on any investment for taxpayers. Subject to value for money and affordability, up to £300 million may be available for strategically important hydrogen projects. Projects in the Second Hydrogen Allocation Round will also shortly be progressed to the Invite to Offer stage, with funding to be considered as part of the next spending review.

Changes to the Department's budgets will be reflected in relevant Supplementary and Main Estimates in the usual way.