Claire Coutinho MP: written questions
4 Jul 2024–3 Jul 2025
How these years work
Our reporting years run from 4 July to 3 July, starting with the 2024 general election. They are not official parliamentary sessions. Office costs keep IPSA’s April–March financial years. Records may cover only part of a year; a missing record does not mean no work was done.
Read what this MP said, asked and contributed in Parliament.
41 published records · newest first.
Written questions
HydrogenDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 19 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 61347More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of (a) the cost to the public purse and (b) the potential impact on energy bills of Hydrogen Allocation Round 2.
Answer: In April 2025, the Government announced a shortlist of 27 projects across the UK to progress to the next stage of the Second Hydrogen Allocation Round (HAR2) process. Value for money and the affordability of energy bills will be central to decisions regar...
Answered 27 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordHydrogenDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 19 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 61346More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the target for 10GW of hydrogen production capacity on energy bills by 2030.
Answer: The Government believes that the only way to guarantee our energy security and protect billpayers permanently is to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels and towards homegrown clean energy. Low carbon hydrogen is a key option for decarbonising ha...
Answered 27 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordHydrogenDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 19 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 61345More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Gas Shippers Obligation on energy bills.
Answer: The Department consulted on the design of the Gas Shipper Obligation (GSO) earlier this year and published an analytical annex focusing on its impact on gas users, based on Hydrogen Allocation Round 1 estimated costs. The affordability of energy bills rem...
Answered 27 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordCarbon Emissions: TaxationDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 19 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 61343More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of aligning with the EU Emissions Trading System on the price of carbon in the UK.
Answer: The price of carbon allowances in the UK Emissions Trading Scheme is set by the market. Linking the UK and EU ETSs is expected to create a larger, more stable market, which will lower the costs of decarbonisation for UK businesses. Many industry stakehold...
Answered 27 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordElectricityDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 5 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 57731More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what the total cost of procuring frequency control services was in each month since January 2022.
Answer: The data requested is a matter of public record and is published by the National Energy System Operator (NESO) here under the headings “MBSS” and “MBSS Archive”.
Answered 13 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordHydrogen: BusinessDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 4 Jun 2025AnsweredUIN 57391More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when he plans to publish his Department's hydrogen to power business model.
Answer: In December 2024, the Government committed to implementing a Hydrogen to Power Business Model (H2PBM) to de-risk Hydrogen to Power investment by mitigating deployment barriers.Later this year, we will publish a H2PBM market engagement exercise outlining f...
Answered 13 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: SubsidiesDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 May 2025AnsweredUIN 55015More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, for what reason his Department has not conducted an impact assessment of its proposed extension of the Drax Power Station subsidy arrangements.
Answer: We are conducting a rigorous economic assessment of the proposed support for Drax, including detailed value for money analysis. Our current analysis shows that the new arrangement will halve the level of consumer subsidy compared to existing arrangements....
Answered 9 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: Carbon EmissionsDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 May 2025AnsweredUIN 55014More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the CO2 released annually by Drax Power Station on the ability of the UK to meet the emissions reduction targets included in the Clima
Answer: CO2 emissions from the combustion of biomass at Drax Power Station are not included in the assessment of emissions in Carbon Budgets. This is consistent with international guidelines established by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), whi...
Answered 9 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: SubsidiesDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 May 2025AnsweredUIN 55013More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of increasing the price per megawatt hour of the subsidies received by the Drax Power Station by 13% on his plans to reduce household ene
Answer: The strike price for the proposed low carbon dispatchable CfD with Drax is £113 MWh (2012 prices) compared to £100 MWh (2012 prices) currently. This modest increase reflects that Drax’s fixed operating costs will be spread over far fewer units of generati...
Answered 9 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: TimberDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 May 2025AnsweredUIN 55012More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2025 to Question 43723 on Carbon Emissions: Trees, if he will publish emails where the KPMG report was discussed.
Answer: We have determined that it would not be in the public interest to release further information on this issue in this instance. Protecting commercially sensitive information facilitates the frank exchange of information between the private sector and govern...
Answered 9 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: TimberDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 May 2025AnsweredUIN 55010More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2025 to Question 43723 on Carbon Emissions: Trees, if he will publish minutes of meetings with officials where the KPMG report was discussed.
Answer: We have determined that it would not be in the public interest to release further information on this issue in this instance. Protecting commercially sensitive information facilitates the frank exchange of information between the private sector and govern...
Answered 9 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordRenewable Energy: FinanceDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 May 2025AnsweredUIN 55009More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2025 to Question 43723 on Carbon Emissions: Trees, whether it is standard practice for officials in his Department to receive time-limited access to documen
Answer: DESNZ officials were granted access by Drax to review the KPMG reports in January 2025. These reports were internal fact-finding documents, commissioned by Drax under legal privilege to review their biomass supply chain against the sustainability requirem...
Answered 9 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordDrax Power Station: TimberDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 May 2025AnsweredUIN 55007More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2025 to Question 43723 on Carbon Emissions: Trees, if he will ask Drax Group plc to share the interim KPMG report of December 2022 with Members of Parliamen
Answer: The KPMG reports were commissioned by Drax as a confidential internal fact-finding exercise and are the property of Drax. The government does not hold them. It is for Drax to decide whether they wish to release them to Parliament or the public. Ofgem has ...
Answered 9 Jun 2025
Original Parliament recordRenewable Energy: Electricity GenerationDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 30 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 49457More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 29 April 2025 to Question 47816 on Renewable Energy: Electricity Generation, what the annual cost to consumers of the Offtaker of Last Resort scheme has been since 2
Answer: Since its launch there have been no applications to the OLR scheme and no Backstop PPAs have been entered into. The only costs related to the scheme are the administrative costs incurred by Ofgem. The cost of the scheme for 2024/25 was £26,902. Details of...
Answered 12 May 2025
Original Parliament recordRenewable Energy: Electricity GenerationDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 24 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 47816More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Offtaker of Last Resort scheme has been implemented.
Answer: The Scheme was introduced on 1 October 2015 and is intended as a last resort to help renewable generators who have an Investment Contract or Contracts for Difference (CFD) contract, who cannot get a PPA through the usual commercial means. Ofgem administer...
Answered 29 Apr 2025
Original Parliament recordSmart Export GuaranteeDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 24 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 47815More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of the potential impact of the smart export guarantee on annual costs to consumers in each year since 2020.
Answer: The Smart Export Guarantee is a market-driven mechanism that captures the value of small-scale exported electricity and helps meet net zero commitments at the lowest net cost to consumers and businesses. This means that SEG tariffs are set by energy suppl...
Answered 2 May 2025
Original Parliament recordRenewable Energy: Fees and ChargesDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 24 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 47814More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of Balancing Services Use of System charges that were caused by the management of renewable energy generation assets in each year since
Answer: Balancing Services Use of System (BSUoS) charges are administered by the National Energy System Operator (NESO). The variable nature of renewable and low carbon intermittent sources of generation can require NESO to undertake additional grid balancing act...
Answered 2 May 2025
Original Parliament recordRenewable Energy: Fees and ChargesDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 24 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 47813More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of Transmission Network Use of System charges that were caused by the (a) expansion and (b) reinforcement required for renewable energy
Answer: The Government does not hold this information. Transmission Network Use of System (TNUoS) charges recover the cost of installing and maintaining the high-voltage transmission network, which are paid for by electricity suppliers and transmission-connected ...
Answered 2 May 2025
Original Parliament recordRenewable EnergyDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 24 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 47811More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of the Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin scheme in each year since 2003.
Answer: REGO certificates are issued by Ofgem to eligible generators for free, and certificates are then purchased by electricity suppliers to surrender in the Fuel Mix Disclosure process. This has generated a market for the sale and purchase of certificates. The...
Answered 2 May 2025
Original Parliament recordRenewal Energy: DistributionDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 24 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 47810More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of Distribution Use of System charges that were the result of connecting renewable energy generation assets in each year since 2002.
Answer: The Government does not hold this information. Distribution Use of System (DUoS) charges are paid for by electricity suppliers and distribution connected generatorsand passed onto consumers through electricity bills. Each Distribution Network Operator (DN...
Answered 2 May 2025
Original Parliament recordElectricity: DistributionDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 24 Apr 2025AnsweredUIN 47809More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the annual cost of Distribution Use of System charges since 2002.
Answer: The Government does not hold this information. Distribution Use of System (DUoS) charges are paid for by electricity suppliers and distribution connected generatorsand passed onto consumers through electricity bills. Each Distribution Network Operator (DN...
Answered 2 May 2025
Original Parliament recordElectricity: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 23 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26088More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January to Question 24699 on Electricity: Artificial Intelligence, if he will publish the terms of reference for European Economic Research Limited's analysis of
Answer: This project was awarded through an open tender process, which concluded in November. As part of this process, the terms of reference for the project were publicly disclosed. Once the tender closed and had been awarded to the European Economic Research Li...
Answered 28 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordElectricity: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 23 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26087More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025 to Question 24699 on Electricity: Artificial Intelligence, if he will publish the report by European Economic Research Limited on the future net ener
Answer: It is DESNZ policy to publish contracted technical work once it has been independently internally peer reviewed. We intend to similarly publish the report by European Economic Research Limited once it is completed in April.
Answered 28 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordEuropean Economic Research: ContractsDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 23 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 26086More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2025 to Question 24699 on Electricity: Artificial Intelligence, what the value is of the contract awarded to European Economic Research Limited to analyse
Answer: This information will be made publicly available the usual way through the Department's annual report and accounts.
Answered 28 Jan 2025
Original Parliament recordUK Emissions Trading SchemeDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled 20 Jan 2025AnsweredUIN 24945More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of UK Emissions Trading Scheme 's allowance allocation policy on (a) carbon leakage and (b) the offshoring of emissions.
Answer: The provision of Free Allocation under the UK ETS mitigates the risk of carbon leakage and associated offshoring of emissions by reducing industrial sectors’ exposure to the carbon price. The UK ETS Authority is reviewing Free Allocation policy to ensure ...
Answered 28 Jan 2025
Original Parliament record
Explore activity by topic or department
Written questions by answering department
4 Jul 2024–3 Jul 2025. One record per UIN and tabled date; the named department is not a measure of answer quality.
View as listWhat this shows and doesn't show
Published records only — not a full account of an MP’s work. How we work →