Martin McCluskey
MP for Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West · Labour · United Kingdom
“Member’s questions about the methodology and why we are, in his words, supporting heat batteries ahead of other forms of electric heating, the responses to the consultation we ran in 2025 showed broad support for expanding the scheme to additional electric technologies.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It was only after that deliberation that we decided to include heat batteries in the boiler upgrade scheme. On his final question around the value of the £2,500 grant, we arrived at that number largely because it was judged to be the best amount, given the lower cost of heat batteries versus heat pumps.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The draft regulations are an important enabling step towards the future inclusion of heat batteries within the scheme, helping to ensure that consumers can benefit from a wider range of low-carbon heating technologies.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome the hon. Member for Hinckley and Bosworth to his new role. I am sure this will be the first of many Committees in which we will face each other. Turning to the hon. Member’s points, he obviously heard what I had to say yesterday about departmental budgets.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I gently say to him that his party had 14 years in Government in which to reduce the spark gap and did not make much progress. Since we have been in Government, we have made sure that the reduction in levies has fallen heavily on the electricity bill rather than just on gas, and also adopted contracts for difference and encouraged compani…”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The draft regulations amend section 100 of the Energy Act 2008, which provides powers for the Secretary of State to establish “a scheme to facilitate and encourage renewable generation of heat” in England and Wales. At present, those powers apply only in relation to specified technologies and energy sources.”
House of Commons14 October 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
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“Let me first turn to the point that has been raised by the hon. and learned Member for North Antrim and the hon. Member for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine. As I understand it—we were obviously not in government in this period; the party of the hon. Member for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine was—during the passage of the 2022 Act, that section was formulated in such a way in order for the powers to be implemented once the Executive were formed. It does not mean that if there were not to be a First Minister and Deputy First Minister, the powers would cease. If I am incorrect about that, I will come back in writing to Committee members, but it is my understanding that the section is like that purely because, at the time that the 2022 Act was being discussed, there was not an Executive formed.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“As I said in my opening speech, these provisions allow the Northern Ireland Executive now to take forward their own scheme and for that money to be released, pending the agreement of the final business case with the Treasury. As I also said in my opening speech, I have discussed this with the Northern Ireland Minister for the Economy, and we are taking forward these regulations at the Executive’s request to make sure that that funding can be released. Over the three years, it will amount to a £30 bill reduction, because of the removal of 75% of the renewables obligation, which will now be paid by the Treasury. Pending the Northern Ireland Executive coming forward with the business case—it is obviously for them to decide how it is disbursed—that £81 million will be disbursed to people across Northern Ireland.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Until February 2030, these regulations give the Northern Ireland Department for the Economy similar spending and direction-making powers to those we have used to deliver reduced costs on bills here in Great Britain. These powers will apply for the duration of the transfer of renewables obligation costs to the Exchequer. As previously stated, I therefore do not expect my Department to need to take further legislative steps in relation to the policy in Northern Ireland, with the Executive now taking on the implementation. I commend these draft regulations to the Committee. Question put and agreed to .”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Oversight will be done in the ordinary way that all oversight of spending is done. As I said, however, the final business case will be approved by the Treasury before that funding is released to the Northern Ireland Executive. Oversight will proceed as it normally would in such circumstances. To conclude, these regulations are an example of good, practical intergovernmental working. They support our colleagues in the Northern Ireland Executive to deliver reduced energy bills. To be clear, these regulations are enabling in nature. Policy decisions on the use of the powers are ultimately for the Executive, as I said, with the funds available to them.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We recognise that the latest price cap that has been announced will be deeply concerning for households, many of whom were already struggling before the Iran crisis hit. That is why the Government have already taken action. We have taken £150 of costs off energy bills, extended the warm home discount to nearly 6 million families and provided over £50 million of immediate support for vulnerable customers who use heating oil. We will, of course, continue to monitor the situation closely ahead of winter and stand ready to take action.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The hon. Member makes an important point. The Government do not want anyone to be making the choice between heating and eating. That is why across Government we are working on a data sprint to work out how we can use household income date to ensure that we are targeting support at the right people.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The hon. Gentleman’s constituents in Leicester will benefit from the decisions that we have already made. Those decisions take £150 off energy costs and extend the warm home discount and the warm homes plan, providing £15 billion of support. We are delinking and we are already taking action, as the Secretary of State announced last month. Ofgem has pointed out that although last week wholesale gas prices at the price cap went up by 24%, electricity went up by 5%. As it said: “This reflects the increase in the amount of renewable generation on the system and therefore reduced reliance on gas”.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That comes from a member of a party that learned no lessons from the last energy crisis. We will not make the same mistakes, which is why we are investing in clean power by 2030, which will drive down bills. Only today, we have seen the jobs benefit from the investment in clean energy, supporting 1.1 million jobs, 22,000 small businesses and £105 billion for our economy.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for all the work he does to advocate for his constituents in Na h-Eileanan an Iar; I was pleased to visit him recently to see the impact that the increases in heating oil are having on his constituents. We are looking closely at the non-domestic heating oil market, and we will come forward with more proposals in due course.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My hon. Friend will know that we are taking action, which the Secretary of State announced, to further delink the cost of electricity from gas. As Ofgem said last week in relation to the price cap, we are already seeing the effects of that. Because of the additional renewable generation in the system, we are seeing the effects of that. Every turbine we build, every solar panel we deploy and every reactor we bring online will ultimately reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and bring down the cost of electricity.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I would be more than happy to meet to discuss that. The warm homes plan—our £15 billion investment in home energy upgrades, which is the biggest in British history—will go a long way to achieving some of the ends that my hon. Friend describes. I point him towards the work that we are doing jointly with the Green Finance Institute to bring forward low-cost consumer loans so that people across the country can benefit from clean technology.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I welcome the hon. Lady to her place, and I look forward to working closely with her on this brief, as I have done with other colleagues from her party. She will know that we have said we are looking at all contingencies in relation to the support that we may need to offer in the winter, but that has to be paid for. We need to ensure that we have proposals that do not make the same mistakes that the Conservatives made in the last crisis, when they wrote a blank cheque in order to provide support to people, so we will come forward with plans for support in the winter.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for the work he is doing on this issue in his constituency, and I would be happy to meet him to discuss it further. I have seen for myself the benefits that green doctors—energy doctors—bring to constituencies across the country when I have visited those programmes. That kind of local support will be central to the work we are doing in setting up the warm homes agency, which will provide advice and guidance to people across the country.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We can see the economic recklessness of the Conservative party when the hon. Member stands at that Dispatch Box making uncosted promises and claims. Before this crisis, bills were going down—they were going in the right direction—and no one would have anticipated the consequences of the war in Iran. Let us look at the balance sheet of the past two years. This Government have made the biggest investment in warm homes in our history, with record-breaking renewables delivering for 23 million homes. As of today, there has been £90 billion of clean energy investment, and every single wind turbine we deploy and every single nuclear reactor that is online reduces energy bills for consumers across the country.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“For too long, heat networks have been left unregulated, with consumers paying the price. That is why I am pleased that we have now established Ofgem as the heat network sector regulator, delivering statutory redress, advice and advocacy to protect households. We aim to develop the regulatory framework further, and recently concluded a consultation on mandating minimum technical standards.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I was very pleased to meet my hon. Friend’s constituents in Edinburgh to discuss the issues that they face with their heat network. The poor experience that they have had is an example of why we have introduced this regulation, and I commend her for the campaign that she has been running on their behalf. She is right to say that, under the new regulatory framework, heat network suppliers will be required to submit pricing data quarterly to Ofgem, improving oversight.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The hon. Gentleman will know that I take a keen interest in Northern Irish politics. I spent this morning in a Delegated Legislation Committee, delivering a reduction in bills through the removal of the renewables obligation. I am more than happy to discuss further with him how the regulation of heat networks might operate in Northern Ireland.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My hon. Friend is a big champion of not just Bristol, but climate action more generally. Bristol is one of the trailblazing heat network cities, and its City Leap partnership is a model of what other local authorities can consider. I am pleased that we have announced nearly £35 million in this Parliament for the further development of its heat networks.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We are considering a range of remediation options in a number of schemes for which the Department is responsible, most of which were operated by the previous Government. We will come forward with proposals soon.”
House of Commons2 June 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Households that are not automatically matched by the Department for Work and Pensions will continue to be notified by the Government, and they will be directed to the warm home discount helpline to determine their eligibility for the core group rebate. By continuing the warm home discount scheme, through the draft regulations, we are securing vital support for eligible Scottish households each winter—the coldest time of the year, when support is most needed. I commend the draft regulations to the Committee.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Under the core group and broader group, around 560,000 rebates are expected to be provided each winter to Scottish households for the rest of this decade, which is almost double the number supported in winter 2023-24, before the scheme was expanded by this Government for winter 2025-26. In addition, the draft regulations will introduce provisions for a late rebate to be issued where a household eligible for the core group did not receive support in the previous scheme year because of an administrative error by a supplier, Ofgem or the Secretary of State. The draft regulations also include a new power to allow the Secretary of State to direct suppliers to communicate additional information about the scheme directly to successfully data-matched core group customers.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The draft regulations will update the mandatory eligibility criteria for the application-based broader group, which suppliers must consider when providing support via the broader group. The number of rebates available within the broader group is finite and is dependent on the size of each supplier’s obligation in Scotland. Suppliers will continue to determine their own application processes and decide which eligible households receive the rebate within their obligation. Suppliers will continue to have discretion, subject to Ofgem approval, to extend their eligibility criteria further to other households that are wholly or mainly in, or at risk of, fuel poverty.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Participating suppliers will continue to be obliged to provide a £150 rebate to eligible households in the core group, applied directly to their electricity bill. The draft regulations also set out new eligibility criteria for the core group in Scotland, aligning qualified benefits with those of the Scottish winter heating payment, as of December 2025, for the next scheme period. It is estimated that 345,000 households will receive a core group rebate each year, an increase of roughly 250,000 on 2025-26. The draft regulations will continue to oblige scheme suppliers to allocate the remaining balance of their Scottish spending obligation through non-core group support, delivered via the broader group, and optionally though industry initiatives.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Consultation responses relating to Scotland were shared with Scottish Ministers, who have determined the eligibility criteria for the next scheme period within the agreed spending limit, as set out in the draft regulations. That spending limit will be £92 million for this year, as well as for subsequent years. The draft regulations will continue to require energy suppliers with more than 1,000 domestic customer accounts across Great Britain to participate in the scheme. Suppliers with fewer than 1,000 domestic accounts will be able, as they are now, to participate on a voluntary basis. The draft regulations will continue to provide for £150 rebates to be provided by scheme suppliers under the data-matched core group and the application-based broader group.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Under the Energy Act 2010, as amended by the Scotland Act 2016, Scottish Ministers have powers to design their own fuel poverty scheme, subject to consultation with and agreement from the Secretary of State. To date, the Scottish Government have not made use of those devolved powers. They have instead requested that the UK Government prepare regulations to lay in this Parliament, on their behalf, to continue the warm home discount for the next scheme period. Scottish Government Ministers must consent to the making of such regulations before they are made; I have sought and received their formal consent. Let me set out some of the background. In September, the Government consulted, with the agreement of the Scottish Government, on proposals for the next scheme period.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Warm Home Discount (Scotland) Regulations 2026. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Desmond. The draft regulations were laid before the House on 17 March. Since 2011, the warm home discount has supported low-income and vulnerable households by reducing energy bills during the coldest months of the year, when support is most needed. The Warm Home Discount (Scotland) Regulations 2022 ended on 31 March 2026; the draft regulations will extend the scheme in Scotland for a further five years until 2031, providing certainty for households, suppliers and delivery partners. As the Committee will know, fuel poverty is a devolved matter in Scotland.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“As I mentioned, fuel poverty is a devolved matter in Scotland. The draft regulations, which we are making on behalf of the Scottish Government, will help more households in Scotland who are facing financial challenges or fuel poverty to receive support each winter, the time of year when support is most needed. This Government are ensuring that lower-income households benefit the most from energy bill reductions. I should also address the point that the hon. Member for Gordon and Buchan made about redistribution. This is where we will probably find an ideological difference in our approach to support for the most vulnerable. The Labour party supports redistribution. We support the fact that those with the broadest shoulders are being asked to pay a little more on their energy bills for support—”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“To my knowledge, the Scottish scheme is nowhere near exhausted, but we will keep under review the amount that might be required for additional support. I also point the hon. Member towards the decisions in the Budget to remove costs from energy bills, which disproportionately reduce electricity users’ bills over those who have dual fuel, because most of the discount came from the electricity part of the bill. That will have made a difference. However, we also need to close the spark gap between electricity and gas. The action that the Secretary of State took last week, alongside the Chancellor, to move electricity generation to longer-term contracts for difference will help to close that gap. However, I agree with the hon. Member that there is still room for further measures in future.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is not through continued exposure to volatile fossil fuels like oil and gas that at this very moment are leaving us exposed to volatile wholesale costs, which are still the largest part of each of our energy bills. I can guarantee the hon. Member for Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire that I have noticed no one in Speedos in Inverclyde. Even on the sunny banks of Gourock this weekend, there were certainly no Speedos on display, despite the warm weather. The hon. Member made an important point about the impact of rising energy bills on rural homes and businesses; he will know that provision has already been put in place for additional support for those who use heating oil, with over £50 million delivered by the UK Government and now a £10 million scheme in Scotland. We have always said that we will keep that under review.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Our £150 warm home discount is offering targeted support to the most vulnerable people. There is also universal support, in the form of the 7% price cap reduction in the current price cap period. Last week, we announced the British industrial competitiveness scheme, which provides support for industry. The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero also announced last week how we will go further and faster in our mission for clean power by 2030. It is important to emphasise to hon. Members that the way to get our energy bills down permanently is through home-grown clean power that we control and can control the price of.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Member asked about the cost of £92 million per year. That £92 million is set by the Secretary of State within the part of the regulations that is reserved. That is proportionate to the overall UK figure; £92 million is the amount that goes to the Scottish Government. That is where the reserve power is. There is a UK-wide figure, so UK—in this case, GB—taxpayers will bear the responsibility for the cost of those bills across the country. The hon. Member also spoke about the Tory cheap power plan, which I have read with interest. I have to say that it is quite thin on detail, and I would argue that some of the suggestions in it would probably bring about further instability within our electricity market. Let me talk about some things that the Government have done in just the past few months.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thank hon. Members for their speeches. The hon. Member for Gordon and Buchan asked why there had been a delay in laying the draft regulations. The delay was because of continued negotiations between the UK Government and the Scottish Government. At the outset of the discussions with the Scottish Government, there was ambiguity as to what was devolved and what was reserved; that took us some time to agree with the Scottish Government. Scottish Government Ministers then took some time to determine eligibility for the scheme. The reason that we are putting the draft regulations before the Committee today, rather than having done it before the 2022 regulations came to an end, is that we had to wait for the Scottish Government to decide what the criteria for each of the groups would be. The hon.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That is why we need a balance of universal and targeted support. Currently, through the price cap, those on dual fuel bills will be receiving an average reduction of 7%. Alongside that, we have targeted support for the most vulnerable people in society. I think that that provides us with the right balance to ensure that widespread support is targeted at those who most need it. We acted in last year’s Budget by taking money off energy bills to tackle the cost of living. These significant changes to how energy is priced have ensured that energy bills have fallen by 7% for an average dual fuel customer paying by direct debit. Once again, I commend the draft regulations to the Committee. Question put and agreed to.”
House of Commons27 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We have rolled out support within two and a half weeks, but there is a trade-off when we make such decisions, and the decision that we made was to prioritise speed at this point, which meant deploying funding through local authorities in England and through devolved Governments elsewhere in the UK. That does, however, limit our ability to stipulate what the criteria are, but that is the trade-off we had to make. Listening to hon. Members this morning, I think we have made the right choice in prioritising speed because the need is clearly great right now. Had we been sitting here saying that the Government were coming up with a far more extensive scheme that might take months to deliver, I think we would have had a very different sort of debate this morning.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We know from what has been said this morning, and also from looking at what has been happening in the market, that the price of a litre of heating oil has increased significantly—doubled, in fact—since the war in the middle east began. Even before the situation in the middle east developed, the cost of living crisis was a priority for the Government. Hon. Members know that we have till the end of June. This does not apply to those on heating oil, as we will discuss, but energy prices have been reduced under the price cap by 7% until the end of June, and the Government were taking other measures to alleviate the cost of living even before the middle east situation started. I want to be candid with people about the choices that we had to make. Under the last Government, it took around 200 days for support to come to heating oil customers.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is clear that we need to de-escalate the situation in the middle east. We need a negotiated settlement that allows the free passage of traffic through the strait of Hormuz. That will ultimately determine the fate of energy prices and our constituents’ cost of living. Let me do three things. First, I want to respond to issues raised around the immediate support the Government have offered. Secondly, I will talk a little more about market reform and regulation, and the process going on with the CMA. Finally, I will talk about some of the wider structural issues discussed this morning. As hon. Members have mentioned, 1.5 million households in the UK use heating oil to keep their homes warm.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I thought we were about to end up in an “I am Spartacus” moment. [ Laughter. ] It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Allin-Khan. I thank the hon. Member for North Norfolk (Steff Aquarone) for raising this vital issue and giving us the opportunity to discuss it at length, since it is an important area that is dominating much thinking among Members and in my Department. It is important at the outset to put this in the wider context of what is happening in the middle east. It is clear from what we have heard over the past few weeks that the conflict in the middle east is not Britain’s war. The Prime Minister made the right judgment in not taking the country into offensive action, but how we emerge from this crisis will define us for a generation in how we respond.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) highlighted that almost two thirds of homes rely on heating oil. We have allocated £17 million to support them. Again, we will keep that under review. We have heard complaints from the Northern Ireland Executive, as we have heard from others this morning, that it is not enough. But as I understand it—the hon. Member might want to correct me—there is not currently a scheme through the Northern Ireland Executive to deploy that money, so we do not yet know what the demand actually is in Northern Ireland for the take-up of that funding.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That is in the nature of the trade-off that we had to make. North Norfolk is taking an approach that looks at means-tested benefits, but North Northamptonshire is not taking an approach that relies on means-tested benefits. It is asking for evidence that people are not able to afford a payment, which involves, for example, giving over bank statements to enable people to make an assessment based on income rather than on means-testing. So different authorities are taking different approaches. That is what we have to accept if we are deploying this through the crisis and resilience fund and not having a centralised scheme as we did before. But as I said, this is about doing things at speed to make sure that people have the support they need. On the situation in Northern Ireland, the hon.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“No one has said that this is the extent of all the support that will be on offer: I have been very clear about that, both in the Chamber and whenever I have been asked the question. The point of immediate support now was to provide people with relief from an immediate crisis. We have been very clear—the Chancellor was and the Secretary of State was—that it was never intended to provide discretionary support for every single heating oil user to fill up their tank. It was to provide immediate relief quickly from a pressing crisis that we were facing across the country. We are keeping everything under review. Were we in a situation later in the year where we need to look at providing further support, we will make decisions then, but right now that support is on offer to people. Different local authorities are taking different approaches.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“However, we cannot know at the moment how much is being given out, because the Scottish Government will not let Advice Direct Scotland provide us with that data, so there is no way for us to know what the situation in Scotland looks like. In England, we are having weekly stocktakes with the DWP, which is the Department responsible for the crisis and resilience fund. It is providing us with assurance on the disbursal of those funds, and we hope to have a dataset available in May that looks at how many applications and payments have been made, and what those payments look like across the country.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“As I said, once the funds are disbursed in Northern Ireland, just as across the whole of the United Kingdom, we will make an assessment as to what further work might need to take place. I will have further discussions with the Northern Ireland Executive. We are obviously keeping every option under review, especially as we start to think about later in the year and into the winter. In Northern Ireland, we are still to see what happens when the funds are disbursed. In Scotland, we have heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Na h-Eileanan an Iar (Torcuil Crichton) about how Advice Direct Scotland is disbursing those funds.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Unfortunately, the Scottish Government are not allowing the data to be shared because of the pre-election period. I would argue that that is not what the pre-election period is meant for, and I will continue to have those discussions with the Scottish Government. I know that other hon. Members in Scottish constituencies have faced a similar problem in getting any data about their constituencies from Advice Direct Scotland because of this prohibition from the Scottish Government. I am conscious of time, so I turn to the issue of wider market reform. There is obviously evidence that the market as it exists at the moment is not working. I find it difficult to listen to the hon. Member for Mid Buckinghamshire (Greg Smith), who was a Minister in the Department for Business and Trade under the last Government—”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The Chancellor has written to the CMA to ask that it remains vigilant across heating oil prices and tackles any unjustified increases that it might find. The Government are also in daily contact with industry to understand the drivers of recent price movements. We have reminded heating oil distributors of their commitments under the trade association code of practice.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I hope that it will come forward with the report in June. The Prime Minister has been clear that we will look at what comes forward from the CMA and examine the case for regulation. Hon. Members across the Chamber have spoken about a price cap, but I do not want to prejudge the work of the CMA. There have also been suggestions about minimum orders and price guarantees—there a number of different proposals on the table—but we have to ensure that we make the right decision, and do not end up with unintended consequences that could make the situation worse. In a market with a large number of players, many of which are quite small rural businesses, it is especially important that we do not make the situation any worse. We are looking at a range of options.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Well, the hon. Member was a Member of the party that was last in government, let me say that, and I find it difficult to listen to him tell us about the lessons that we should have learned. We should never have been in this position, and we should not be in a position again where we are facing higher energy prices because of an international situation, and where we are having to deal with an unregulated market in heating oil. I argue that the then Government should have looked at this in 2022 and determined what action needed to be taken. I will explain what we have done so far. The CMA is conducting an investigation at speed. These investigations normally take around a year, but it is going to conduct this one within 12 weeks. It has already completed the evidence-gathering stage, and it is now in the process of examining that evidence.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We are bringing forward the next renewables auction, just months after the most successful auction that we have ever had, which secured enough power for the equivalent of 16 million homes. We are making plug-in solar available for the first time in Britain so that families can buy a low-cost panel straight from a supermarket and set it up on their balcony or in their garden. We are speeding up delivery of the £15 billion warm homes plan. I heard what many Members said about the fabric of housing. There is obviously support within the £5 billion that we have set aside for low-income schemes, but there is also work going on about low interest and no interest consumer loans. I am trying to accelerate that work so that we can get that to people as soon as possible.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Unlike gas and electricity, heating oil is not regulated by Ofgem, and we will put that right by exploring what regulations are needed to protect consumers and get them a better deal. Taking a step back, ongoing events provide us with yet another clear reminder that we must get off the rollercoaster of global fossil fuel markets and on to the path of clean, home-grown energy that we control. We will learn the correct lessons from the crisis, unlike the previous Government, who went through the situation in 2022 and did not. In our mission to make the UK a clean energy superpower, we have already brought in £90 billion of investment in clean British energy. In the light of spiking oil and gas prices, we intend to go further and faster in the pursuit of national energy security.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I hope the report will come back to us some time in June, and then we will examine it to determine what may be required in terms of further action. I want us to move as quickly as possible. I have another meeting with the chief executive of the CMA tomorrow to discuss progress on the market investigation and ensure that work is carrying on at the pace that we want. We are not moving slowly. We have already accelerated this process—it was a year, and it is now 12 weeks. That is significant, but we obviously want it to move as quickly as possible. Let me turn to the wider structural issues that we face in the energy sector. We recognise that the heating oil sector is under-regulated.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“At the moment, we are probably looking at early next year, but I would like to see that come forward so that we can use those consumer loans as a response to the current situation. We know that there is significant demand for home upgrades, including solar, battery and heat pumps, but we have to give people the support they need to take up those options. We will speed up the delivery of the £15 billion warm homes plan—the largest home upgrade programme in British history—and we are reforming nuclear regulations following the Fingleton review so that we can fast-track new nuclear power stations.”
House of Commons15 April 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗