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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Answer of 7 November 2022 to Question 72508 on Energy: Meters, if he set out how the Energy Price Guarantee complies with the Data Access and Privacy Framework for smart metering.

The smart metering Data Access and Privacy Framework (DAPF) ensures that households have control over who can access their energy consumption data and for what purposes, except where this is required for regulated purposes. It establishes specific provisions relating to the processing of energy consumption data, which are designed to complement, but not replace, wider data protection legislation.

Electricity and Gas meter personal data collected through the Energy Price Guarantee scheme will be processed in the public interest under Article 6(1)(e) of UK GDPR and processing will be compliant with the provisions set out in the DAPF.

Smart meters only record energy consumption data. Personal information such as names, addresses and bank details are not stored on a smart meter.