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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether successful bidders to construct any or all of the North West Coast Connection will be held to the same standards as National Grid on the (a) design and technology granted in the consent order, (b) levels of mitigation, such as undergrounding, (c) level of community and stakeholder engagement, (d) mitigating the environmental impacts, (e) impact of traffic and transport and (f) opportunities for local companies to form part of the construction supply chain.

The design and implementation of the proposed competitive regime for onshore transmission assets is properly a matter for Ofgem as the independent regulator. It is important to note that, regardless of who constructs and maintains an asset, all network operators must be licenced by the regulator and are subject to strict controls to ensure safety, security and reliability. Any successful bidders will be held to the same strict standards that the current incumbent network companies operate by, including in regards to industry codes, grid standards and planning requirements.