Written questions by Smart.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of consumer redress options for customers with unresolved complaints against energy suppliers that have entered administration.

There are two routes through which energy suppliers enter administration. Where a supplier enters a special administration, they continue to hold a licence and to be regulated by Ofgem, including ensuring that consumers have access to redress. Where a supplier enters a supplier of last resort process, their licence will be revoked, their customers will move to a new supplier and an insolvency practitioner will be appointed to manage the failed supplier. While their new supplier is not required to take on complaints relating to the failed supplier and the Energy Ombudsman will not consider disputes against the supplier which has ceased trading, insolvency practitioners have duties as Officers of the Court and are bound by the Insolvency Practitioner Code of Ethics. Additionally, Ofgem has previously written to insolvency practitioners to remind them that they expect insolvency practitioners to abide by the same regulatory requirements as energy suppliers when dealing with energy consumers.

Whether he plans to support the development of new hydroelectric projects in the North West.

Officials continue to engage with the British Hydropower Association regarding the future role of the UK’s remaining small-scale hydropower resource, estimated to be a maximum technical potential of around 1.5GW, in supporting the UK energy system. This includes consideration of opportunities in regions such as the North West. Furthermore, the Smart Export Guarantee, which came into force on 1 January 2020, requires major electricity suppliers to offer a tariff for electricity exported by small low-carbon generators, including small-scale hydro.

What discussions he has had with Ofgem on holding electricity providers accountable for persistent power outages experienced by households.

Great Britain has one of the most reliable energy systems in the world and maintaining a secure electricity supply is a key priority for Government. The Department works closely with industry, regulators and other stakeholders to continually improve and maintain the resilience of the energy network. To help protect customers and ensure quality and reliable electricity supply, Ofgem sets Quality-of-Service Guaranteed Standards that must be met by each electricity network company. Ofgem also sets annual targets for customer interruptions and customer minutes lost. Each year Distribution Network Operators must report their performance against these measures to Ofgem. Ofgem then assesses, if targets have been met and rewards or penalises the network operators appropriately.

What safeguards are in place to assess the financial resilience of companies installing (a) solar panels and (b) heat pumps under government-backed schemes.

It is a requirement of the Government's microgeneration incentive schemes that installers must be a member of the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) (or equivalent), and MCS currently mandate Consumer Code membership for their accredited installers. These Chartered Trading Standards Institute approved Consumer Codes assess installers’ financial resilience as part of their application for membership, and then periodically as part of the Consumer Codes ongoing monitoring of their members. As part of their impending scheme reforms, MCS intends to implement a process of checking the financial resilience of every installer in real time, every day.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure private tenants are impacted by the Warm Homes Plan.

The Warm Homes Plan will help households, including those in the private rented sector, take up measures like solar panels, heat pumps, batteries and insulation, helping them save money on their bills and benefit from cleaner, cheaper heating. The Government has pledged to take action to stand with tenants and deliver the safety and security of warmer, cheaper homes. We have recently consulted on improving energy efficiency standards in the private rented sector in England and Wales. The consultation closed on the 2nd May and we are currently reviewing responses. Further detail will be given in the Warm Homes Plan when it is published in October.

What comparative assessment he has made of the potential impact of EPC band requirements on (a) all homeowners and (b) homeowners with (i) detached and (ii) bungalow-style properties.

We have recently consulted on reforms to Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) to ensure these are better aligned with our key policy objectives of achieving Clean Power by 2030 and accelerating to Net Zero, and effectively delivering the Warm Homes plan to reduce peoples bills and address fuel poverty. The consultation has now closed, and we are analysing the responses. As part of this we will consider the impact on relevant groups including homeowners and will publish the Government response in due course.

Whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of private landlords who will sell their properties as a result of the proposed change in Energy Performance Certificate standards.

The Government is consulting on increasing minimum energy efficiency standards in the domestic private rented sector. The consultation includes proposals for rented homes to achieve EPC C or equivalent by 2030, unless a valid exemption applies, and is accompanied by the Department’s impact assessment. The assessment makes clear that we are unable to quantify the extent to which this will impact the supply of properties as landlords may take different approaches. We encourage stakeholders to feed in views and evidence on the potential impact of these proposals. Following the consultation process, a government response and full impact assessment will be published.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the proposed changes to Energy Performance Certificate requirements on trends in the level of privately rented housing stock.

The Government is consulting on increasing minimum energy efficiency standards in the domestic private rented sector. The consultation includes proposals for rented homes to achieve EPC C or equivalent by 2030, unless a valid exemption applies, and is accompanied by the Department’s impact assessment. The assessment makes clear that we are unable to quantify the extent to which this will impact the supply of properties as landlords may take different approaches. We encourage stakeholders to feed in views and evidence on the potential impact of these proposals. Following the consultation process, a government response and full impact assessment will be published.

What steps his Department is taking to support workers in the North Sea Oil and Gas industry in the transition towards net zero.

The consultation on ‘Building the North Sea’s energy future’ sets out the Government’s plans for accelerating investment in net zero, creating high-quality jobs for oil and gas workers. It seeks views on how to best support workers and communities through the transition and closes 30 April. The Government has worked with industry and unions to launch the 'Energy Skills Passport’ for oil and gas workers transitioning to offshore wind roles and announced that Great British Energy will be headquartered in Aberdeen, to reflect the commitment that communities which powered our country’s energy past will power its clean energy future.

Whether his Department has had recent discussions with the Energy Ombudsman on (a) trends in the number of billing inaccuracies and (b) the impact of billing inaccuracies on customers.

Details of Ministers' and Permanent Secretaries' meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.

What discussions his Department has had with Ofgem on improving oversight of energy suppliers’ billing practices to help prevent inaccurate estimated billing after actual meter readings have been submitted.

Details of Ministers' and Permanent Secretaries' meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.

Whether their Department has made an assessment of the impact of energy suppliers incorrectly reporting missed payments to credit reference agencies based on erroneous estimated bills on consumers.

While this is a commercial matter between suppliers and credit reference agencies, the Government takes the issue of accurate billing very seriously.All suppliers must take the required steps to reflect accurate meter readings in bills or statements sent to customers where these have been provided by a customer or obtained by the supplier. This is also laid out in the Ofgem’s licence conditions.All energy suppliers must follow Ofgem’s enforceable overarching principles of the Standard Licence Conditions 0 and 0A. These are a set of broad and enforceable ‘standards of conduct’ principles that set fundamental expectations on how suppliers must ensure fair treatment of each customer. These principles guide supplier behaviour, information provision, and customer service processes.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure energy suppliers issue accurate bills based on customer-submitted meter readings rather than estimated usage.

The Government takes the issue of accurate billing very seriously. All suppliers must take the required steps to reflect accurate meter readings in bills or statements sent to customers. This is laid out in Ofgem licence conditions. All energy suppliers must follow Ofgem’s enforceable overarching principles of the Standard Licence Conditions 0 and 0A. These are a set of broad and enforceable ‘standards of conduct’ principles that set fundamental expectations on how suppliers must ensure fair treatment of each customer. These principles guide supplier behaviour, information provision, and customer service processes. For domestic consumers, the Standards also dictate how suppliers identify and respond to consumers in vulnerable situations.