Great British Energy Bill: Third Reading

MPs voted 361 to 111 on 29 October 2024 to pass the Great British Energy Bill at its Third Reading, the final stage in the House of Commons before a bill proceeds to the House of Lords. Third Reading is the last opportunity for MPs to approve or reject a bill in its entirety. The result means the Bill passed comfortably, with 361 votes in favour and 111 against. The Bill creates a new publicly owned company, Great British Energy, backed by up to £8.3 billion of public funding over the Parliament. Its statutory purposes are to facilitate clean energy production, distribution, storage and supply; reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel energy; improve energy efficiency; and strengthen energy security. The company will be wholly owned by the Crown but will not hold Crown status. The Secretary of State is required to publish a statement of strategic priorities, and Great British Energy must align its plans with those priorities and report annually to Parliament. Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs voted unanimously in favour, as did all three Green MPs and two others listed as Your Party, giving the government a large and cohesive majority. The Conservatives voted 97 to 0 against, joined by all six Reform UK MPs, all five Democratic Unionist Party MPs, and one Restore Britain MP. Seven independents voted in favour and three against. There were no notable cross-party rebellions on either side.