Select committee: Energy Security and Net Zero Committee
Recommendation 21
2nd Report - Gridlock or growth? Avoiding energy planning chaos
Published 7 Jul 2025
Addressed to Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
Energy Security and Net Zero Committee National planning for energy infrastructure All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
We welcome the National Energy System Operator (NESO)’s ambition for meaningful and comprehensive engagement with diverse communities, economic interests and societal groups throughout the development of the SSEP and the CSNP. At the very least, we expect the use of surveys, focus groups, roundtables, stakeholder meetings, events and webinars to engage with people directly. It is imperative that public consultation over these plans includes targeted engagement with communities who will see large volumes of infrastructure, clusters of projects, or energy infrastructure in their locality for this first time, as set out in the SSEP methodology. Engagement with these communities should raise awareness of the infrastructure which they are likely to see in the years to come. (Conclusion, Paragraph 61) 54
From: Energy Security and Net Zero Committee, 2nd Report - Gridlock or growth? Avoiding energy planning chaos (HC 868), 7 July 2025
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 19 November 2025 (deadline 7 September 2025).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government's response says it will provide sufficient time for committee scrutiny of future NPS updates, but it "cannot commit" to a minimum review period, and it sets out amendments and positions on the Committee's wider recommendations.
- On scrutiny timing, the government "notes" the Committee's concerns and says it will "ensure early liaison with Committee" in future NPS reviews, but cannot commit to a minimum review period.
- On Critical National Priority infrastructure, it has amended EN-1, replacing "material reduction" with "significant reduction" and adding that exceptional circumstances may "warrant a small reduction in generation capacity and function".
- On the Centralised Strategic Network Plan, it agrees to remove the term "strategic solution" but will maintain "indicative routes" and "strategic parameters".
- On distribution infrastructure, it has consulted on removing 132kV wooden poles from the NSIP regime and "will respond in due course"; any threshold change would need secondary legislation.