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

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the minimum data set is that will be collected from energy consumers who agree to the installation of smart meters; and what steps consumers can take to ensure that additional data is not being collected by energy providers and other bodies.

Smart meters are replacing traditional gas and electricity meters in Great Britain as part of an essential infrastructure upgrade to make the energy system more efficient and flexible, enabling the cost-effective delivery of net zero greenhouse gas emissions.

The Government has put in place a strict Data Access and Privacy Framework that protects consumers’ privacy and set outs the levels of access to energy consumption data from smart meters permitted for different parties. The Framework ensures that households have control over who can access their energy consumption data and for what purposes, except where this is required for regulated purposes (such as accurate billing).

Consumers can also choose to share their data with third parties for example to obtain tailored energy efficiency advice. Where third parties are accessing consumption data via the smart metering network they must have the consumer’s consent which consumers can withdraw at any time. In addition to the specific protections of the Framework, all parties are required to comply with relevant data protection laws when processing personal data.