Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether Ofgem has reviewed the Employment Tribunal case involving the Drax whistleblower; and whether Ofgem has assessed whether any matters raised in that case have implications for Drax’s compliance with sustainability reporting requirements under the Renewables Obligation regime.

In order to receive subsidies under the Renewables Obligation (RO), Drax must demonstrate compliance with biomass sustainability criteria. As part of its 2023-4 investigation into Drax, Ofgem considered a broad range of documents and sources, including statements from whistleblowers. Ofgem's investigation was comprehensive and wide-ranging, and found that whilst Drax complied with the sustainability standards and RO certificates were not issued inappropriately, Drax failed to report some data accurately. The detail of any documents considered in this investigation is for Ofgem to comment on as the independent regulator. Ofgem is confident in its conclusions, as is Government.