Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of whether curtailment payments create incentives to locate generation in areas with insufficient grid capacity.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The revenue that generators can make from curtailment payments is regulated by Ofgem through the Transmission Constraint Licence Condition. This regulation limits the revenue generators can make from being curtailed to the value of the revenue lost through not being able to generate plus reasonable costs. Ofgem can and does take enforcement action against generators that it believes are not complying with this regulation.
The Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP) will optimise the siting of new sources of electricity generation across Great Britain. The Government’s Reformed National Pricing programme will have the SSEP at its heart, and reforms will be designed to ensure incentives for generation projects encourage siting and investment in areas that align with the SSEP.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what lessons his Department has learnt from other countries that have reduced curtailment while expanding renewables.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We use evidence from comparable countries to support our decision making and policy thinking on curtailment. Constraint payments are a natural part of operating an electricity system and are used in many countries such as Italy, Spain, Germany and Denmark. However, the current extent of grid constraints reflects years of underinvestment, with new network infrastructure development having lagged the expansion of new generation. We’re finally changing that, with the biggest upgrade to Great Britain’s electricity network in decades, which will minimise both curtailment and constraint costs, and help deliver clean power by 2030.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of implementing measures similar to those adopted in other European countries to help reduce electricity prices for (a) consumers and (b) industry.
Answered by Martin McCluskey - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Tackling the affordability crisis is Government’s number one priority. At the last Budget, we took an average of £150 of costs off household energy bills from this coming April. The main driver of high energy bills is gas, and we are taking action to reduce electricity prices for consumers and industry by taking back control with homegrown clean power. In designing and implementing energy policy, we take account of approaches adopted successfully in other countries.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of curtailment costs to electricity billpayers in 2026.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Data on the aggregate impact of curtailment payments to electricity billpayers is calculated by the National Energy System Operator (NESO) and can be found in NESO Annual Balancing Report, the next of which will be published later this year. The most recent NESO Annual Balancing Report was published in June 2025, covering the 2024/25 financial year, and can be found via this link: neso.energy/document/362561/download
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what measures are in place to limit curtailment costs during the period before new grid infrastructure becomes operational.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government, the National Energy System Operator (NESO) and the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) are pursuing measures which will reduce constraint costs in the short term. These include making best use of the existing network, deploying smart grid technologies and taking measures to reduce the amount of time networks need to be out of service for essential new build and maintenance. NESO is also progressing other technical measures at pace via the Constraints Collaboration Project. We intend to announce further measures in the Reformed National Pricing (RNP) Deliver Plan which will be published shortly.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the role of battery storage in reducing renewable curtailment.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Electricity storage has an important role to play in decarbonising the power sector by helping to balance the electricity system at lower cost. Electricity storage achieves this by charging when electricity is abundant and discharging when it is scarcer, thereby mitigating the need for grid reinforcement and reducing the curtailment of renewable generation. Efficient use of storage therefore offers opportunities for reducing constraint costs. The Government, the National Energy System Operator (NESO) and the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) are currently investigating options aimed at maximising the benefits of storage technologies in reducing system costs.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of constraint payments and balancing actions in each year since 2020; and what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of this on domestic energy bills.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The breakdown of curtailment and balancing action costs borne by domestic consumers and other data relating to constraints is provided in the National Energy System Operator (NESO) Annual Balancing Report. The most recent of these reports was published in June 2025 which can be found via this link: neso.energy/document/362561/download. We recognise that actions are needed to reduce system constraints. The current extent of grid constraints reflects years of underinvestment, with new network infrastructure development having lagged the expansion of new generation. We are already taking action to reduce constraints with the biggest upgrade to Great Britain’s electricity network in decades.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to page 16 of the Police reform white paper, From Local to National: A New Model for Policing (CP1489), by when will the Police Efficiency and Collaboration Programme be fully operational.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Police Efficiency and Collaboration Programme (PECP) was announced in November 2024 as part of the Government’s manifesto commitment to set a up a programme to drive down costs in policing.
The programme is operational and already making savings. Some examples of the work already underway includes signing 39 forces up to a new commercial energy strategy and piloting central purchasing within policing. These savings will be fully validated and assured after the conclusion of the financial year.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent estimate his Department has made of the proportion of curtailment costs borne by domestic consumers.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Data relating to curtailment caused by constraints including costs is provided in the National Energy System Operator (NESO) Annual Balancing Report at this link: neso.energy/document/362561/download. Constraint costs, as with other interventions taken by NESO to balance the electricity system, are recovered from consumers through Balancing Service Use of System Charges. Both domestic and non-domestic consumers pay these balancing costs, in proportion to their energy consumption. Although the most energy intensive industries receive additional support with these costs.
The current extent of grid constraints reflects years of underinvestment, with new network infrastructure development having lagged the expansion of new generation. We are already taking action to reduce constraints with the biggest upgrade to Great Britain’s electricity network in decades.
Asked by: Greg Smith (Conservative - Mid Buckinghamshire)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2026 to Question 109240, what proportion of the estimated costs of extending the UK Emissions Trading Scheme to domestic maritime are attributable to administrative compliance.
Answered by Chris McDonald - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Impact Assessment estimates £201 million in additional costs over 20 years, with about £179 million, from administrative compliance and around £22 million from emissions reduction investment.
Administrative costs are initially higher because around 2,000 maritime operators enter the scheme in 2026 due to the inclusion of emissions at berth.
The emissions introduced initially are relatively small, and estimates are conservative given overlap with existing UK and EU MRV requirements. On a per operator basis, the admin burden is low. The planned expansion to international maritime is expected to bring far more emissions into scope without increasing administrative burden.