Committee publication · Report · 21 May 2026 · HC 164
1st Report - Clean Power by 2030: A fair deal for Scotland?
From: Scottish Affairs Committee
Inquiry: GB Energy and the net zero transition
Government response deadline: 21 July 2026
Summary
The Scottish Affairs Committee examined whether the UK Government's Clean Power by 2030 mission is achievable and fair for Scotland. Over 18 months, the committee concluded the target is extremely ambitious but not unachievable. However, it found Great British Energy remains in its infancy; grid upgrades will burden Scottish consumers disproportionately through higher standing charges; and proposed community benefits of £5,000 per MW are insufficient, recommending £10,000–£12,500 instead.
Key findings
- Clean Power by 2030 is extremely ambitious and risks undermining public confidence if targets are missed; success depends on securing community consent and ensuring Scottish communities experience change 'with them, not to them'
- Great British Energy has important backing (£8.3 billion capital allocation) but remains in early stages; the committee called for transparency on spending and warns claims about its capabilities must be realistic
- Grid upgrades costing £60 billion by 2030 are necessary but create a perverse outcome: Scottish wind farms are frequently switched off while fossil fuel plants elsewhere fire up; consumers bear the costs via standing charges
- Scotland's electricity standing charges are 8% above the GB average and 31% higher than London; the committee calls for standing charges to apply consistently across all regions
- Proposed mandatory community benefits of £5,000 per MW are insufficient and do not reflect fair compensation; the committee recommends £10,000–£12,500 minimum, plus long-term housing, skills, and employment legacy
Recommendations
- The Government should set out how it intends to work with the Scottish Government to mitigate risks of duplication and inefficiency as GBE takes a more direct role in Scottish investment decisions, rather than allocating funding through existing Scottish Government programmes
- The Government should clarify how much of GBE's £8.3 billion capital allocation has been spent to date and on which projects; set out how GBE's spending and returns will be regularly reported and made accessible to the public
- The Government should do more to reduce current levels of wind farm curtailment and set out in detail its plans for reducing the practice of paying wind farms to switch off
- The Government should reform standing charges so they apply consistently to all regions, leading to a fairer system for consumers in Scotland
- The Government should increase the proposed mandatory community benefits scheme from £5,000 per MW to a minimum of £10,000–£12,500 per MW
- The Government should ensure community energy projects can access the full benefits of the Local Power Plan, including grid connection, to remedy Scotland's disadvantage due to low Transmission Impact Assessment thresholds
- The Government should seize the opportunity presented by renewable energy influx to deliver transformative legacy benefits of housing, skills training, and quality long-term employment for Scotland's rural and remote communities
Tone
CriticalTopics
clean-energygrid-infrastructurecommunity-benefitsfuel-povertypublic-finance
Key actors
Patricia Ferguson, Michael Shanks MP, Dan McGrail, Emma Pinchbeck, Guy Jefferson, Scottish Government, Great British Energy, Ofgem
Notable line
“Clean power targets will only succeed if communities experience the transition as something that is done with them and not to them.”
Key Quotes
“Clean power targets will only succeed if communities experience the transition as something that is done with them and not to them.”
“If we look back, there are probably decisions that we would have taken differently. The decision on investment, for example. […] In hindsight, we under-invested in the networks.”
“[Consensus] is fractured, but not broken. There are still significant numbers of people, in all political parties, who believe it is the right thing to do.”
“… the policy worked "tremendously well" for a long period of time, as it achieved the 20 GW target. 72 However, as generation capacity has continued to increase in the years since, it has left a legacy of insufficient transmission capacity.”
“Great British Energy has important objectives and the backing of a substantial £8.3 billon capital funding allocation. However, the organisation remains in its infancy and is yet to become the fundamental driver of clean energy development it is envisioned to be.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗