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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with (a) Ofcom, (b) Ofwat and (c) Ofgem on incentives for innovation and research and development in their sectors and how that relates to the 2.4 per cent GDP spend on R&D target.

In October 2018 we launched a consultation to build our understanding of whether there are opportunities to further encourage new innovative methods and technologies in the utilities sectors to improve outcomes for consumers. This sought views on the barriers to innovation in the utilities sectors, and how we could improve the regulatory framework to further encourage innovation. We are analysing the responses to this consultation and plan to publish a response in due course.

In June 2019 we announced measures in our White Paper on Regulation for the Fourth Industrial Revolution to support regulators to enable innovation in their sectors, as part of our approach to increasing R&D investment to 2.4% of GDP by 2027. We have invested in projects by both Ofcom and Ofgem to support innovation through the Regulators’ Pioneer Fund.