Appendix 4: Draft Strategy and Policy Statement for Energy Policy in Great Britain 2024
Additional information from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
Q: Could you explain a bit more please how the Devolved Governments responded to the consultations? Did they support the Statement? Did they raise any issues or concerns and, if so, how have these been addressed?
A: We held a two-stage consultation. The first was a private consultation with Scottish and Welsh governments (and Ofgem) in July 2022. This was followed by a public consultation in August 2023.
Both devolved governments have voiced support for the introduction of the SPS.
During the private consultation, we held information sessions with officials from both devolved governments to seek their feedback.
The Welsh government asked for:
- The Welsh net zero targets to be included in the SPS – these were added to the introduction
- A greater focus on consumers – we ensured that there were specific strategic priorities related to consumer protection.
The Scottish government asked for:
- The Scottish net zero targets to be included in the SPS – these were added to the introduction
- The networks section to be strengthened so that it was clear that government wanted Ofgem to make faster regulatory decisions in this area – this was added to the networks section of the document.
While the public consultation was live, we also held a stakeholder roundtable which we invited officials from both devolved governments to attend. Welsh government representatives joined the roundtable, however they didn’t raise any specific issues and did not provide a written response to the public consultation.
Scottish government representatives joined the roundtable and subsequently Neill Gray MSP wrote to our SoS at the time (Grant Shapps MP) confirming that they welcomed the SPS and that many of the strategic priorities and policy outcomes which have been set out in the SPS were aligned with Scotland’s ambitions for a transition to a net zero energy system. Specifically, the letter requested:
- An addition that highlighted the importance of rural communities, as they were more likely to experience fuel poverty – we added into the roles and responsibilities section that Ofgem’s principal objective to protecting consumers includes consumers living in rural areas. We also added a fuel poverty section.
- Emphasis that network development should facilitate opportunities for consumers to participate and benefit from flexibility and demand response markets – this was already in the SPS so we ensured that this remained in the final version.
- A long-term CCUS strategy – we included more detail on CCUS [carbon capture, utilization and storage] and also added information on how a future CCUS SPS would interact with this document.
28 February 2024