Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to support consumers in West Dorset constituency with a) petrol and b) diesel costs.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Fuel price trends are monitored nationally and published in the Department’s weekly statistics on GOV.UK . The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) oversees market transparency and compliance and publish quarterly and yearly reports on Gov.UK.
To support consumers, the Government introduced a voluntary scheme for retailers to share real-time price data, improving visibility for motorists. Building on this, UK consumers will also be able to compare prices more easily through DESNZ’s upcoming open data Fuel Finder scheme, encouraging competitive pricing among retailers, and helping households who own a car save an average of around £40 a year.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of recent trends in levels of (a) petrol and (b) diesel prices in West Dorset.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Fuel price trends are monitored nationally and published in the Department’s weekly statistics on GOV.UK . The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) oversees market transparency and compliance and publish quarterly and yearly reports on Gov.UK.
To support consumers, the Government introduced a voluntary scheme for retailers to share real-time price data, improving visibility for motorists. Building on this, UK consumers will also be able to compare prices more easily through DESNZ’s upcoming open data Fuel Finder scheme, encouraging competitive pricing among retailers, and helping households who own a car save an average of around £40 a year.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) West Dorset constituency and (b) rural areas can access more competitive fuel prices through the Fuel Finder scheme.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Fuel Finder will increase price transparency so drivers can compare prices to find the best deal and incentivise greater local competition, including in rural areas.
The expectation is that third party organisations such as price comparison websites, navigation apps, and other app developers will access the data and incorporate into their consumer facing products, which consumers can then use to compare fuel prices in their local area.
In our draft Impact Assessment, we assess this could result in fuel cost savings for drivers totalling £10.4bn over 10 years which amounts to savings of 1-6 pence per litre at the pump. The hon Member can find the Impact Assessment at www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2025/9780348275308/impacts
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the forthcoming Fuel Finder scheme in addressing significant local fuel price disparities.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Fuel Finder will increase price transparency so drivers can compare prices to find the best deal and incentivise greater local competition, including in rural areas.
The expectation is that third party organisations such as price comparison websites, navigation apps, and other app developers will access the data and incorporate into their consumer facing products, which consumers can then use to compare fuel prices in their local area.
In our draft Impact Assessment, we assess this could result in fuel cost savings for drivers totalling £10.4bn over 10 years which amounts to savings of 1-6 pence per litre at the pump. The hon Member can find the Impact Assessment at www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2025/9780348275308/impacts
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of trends in the level of heating bills on rural communities in the context of the Autumn Budget 2025.
Answered by Katie White - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently.
The creation of Great British Energy will help us to harness clean energy and have less reliance on volatile international energy markets and help in our commitment to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030. This, combined with our Warm Homes Plan to upgrade millions of homes to make them warmer and cheaper to run is how we will drive down energy bills and make cold homes a thing of the past.
We recognise that we need to support households struggling with bills whilst we transition to clean power by 2030, including those in rural communities. On 19 June we announced that we are expanding the Warm Home Discount to around an additional 2.7 million households. This means that from this winter, around 6 million low-income households will receive the £150 support to help with their energy bills.
On 25 September we published a consultation setting out our intention to continue support for those 6 million households. The consultation sets out proposals for the next scheme period (up to winter 2030/31), after current regulations expire on 31 March 2026. Government is gathering feedback from stakeholders on:
The consultation closes on Thursday 20 November.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make it his policy review the minimum export value for rooftop solar electricity to support investment.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) is a market-led mechanism in which energy suppliers, not government, set both tariff levels and structure. This is designed to encourage innovation and competition in the sector and minimise costs to consumers.
The Government monitors the SEG to ensure it continues to support the Clean Energy Mission. Any introduction of a minimum export price would need to be carefully balanced against potential costs to consumers.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what funding he has allocated to support innovation in greenhouse gas removals in each year of this Parliament.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Greenhouse Gas Removals Innovation programme, delivered under the Net Zero Innovation Portfolio, developed 14 First-of-a-Kind Demonstrator plants nationwide.
This Government has a clear focus on commercial deployment. The HyNet Track-1 expansion Project Negotiation List, which includes two Greenhouse Gas Removal projects, was published on 5 August 2025. These projects will now proceed to the negotiations phase of the selection process. Government has also made a significant funding commitment of up to £21.7billion, over 25 years, to kickstart the Carbon Capture Usage and Storage industry.
Allocation of funding to UKRI for research and innovation is ongoing so forecasts on future innovation spend are not currently available.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he plans to replace the Greenhouse Gas Removals Innovation Programme.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Greenhouse Gas Removals Innovation programme, delivered under the Net Zero Innovation Portfolio, developed 14 First-of-a-Kind Demonstrator plants nationwide.
This Government has a clear focus on commercial deployment. The HyNet Track-1 expansion Project Negotiation List, which includes two Greenhouse Gas Removal projects, was published on 5 August 2025. These projects will now proceed to the negotiations phase of the selection process. Government has also made a significant funding commitment of up to £21.7billion, over 25 years, to kickstart the Carbon Capture Usage and Storage industry.
Allocation of funding to UKRI for research and innovation is ongoing so forecasts on future innovation spend are not currently available.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what the total cost to the public purse was for the Greenhouse Gas Removals Innovation Programme.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
This initiative was part of the £1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio. The total government investment in the Greenhouse Gas Removals Innovation Programme has been £53m.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has had discussions with rooftop solar panel manufacturers on the minimum commercially-viable price for exports.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Details of Ministers' and Permanent Secretaries' meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.