Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she is taking steps to encourage energy infrastructure developers to commit to ring-fenced financial bonds to relevant local authorities for decommissioning.

Responsibility for decommissioning on land is set out in the relevant planning permissions. For nationally significant energy infrastructure decisions taken by this Department, the relevant National Policy Statements set out the position on decommissioning, which is reflected in the Secretary of State's decision letters. For cases determined by local planning authorities, the position on decommissioning is set out in the National Planning Policy Framework.

There are separate legal regimes and published guidance relating to the decommissioning of offshore energy infrastructure such renewables and oil and gas.

The 2018 Decommissioning of Offshore Oil and Gas Installations and Pipelines guidance notes set out the decommissioning regime for offshore oil and gas infrastructure. Bonds are a recognised financial instrument to secure decommissioning of oil and gas infrastructure.