Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy for what reasons the draft Domestic Gas and Electricity (Tariff Cap) Bill does not propose a review of the effect of the energy price cap in 2020, (a) every six months and (b) quarterly; and if he will make a statement.

The draft Bill proposes to require Ofgem to review and report on whether the conditions for effective competition are in place and to make a recommendation to the Secretary of State. This will inform the Secretary of State’s decision on whether the cap should remain in force. The first review and report would be in 2020 and each year, up to 2023, that the price cap remains in place. The first review in 2020 is to allow key reforms of the market, such as the smart meters programme, to be implemented while ensuring protection for dis-engaged consumers from poor value tariffs.

In designing the methodology for setting the level of the price cap we would expect that Ofgem would need to consider how to take account of relevant changes in costs such as for wholesale energy.