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Select committee: Energy Security and Net Zero Committee

1st Special Report – Get connected: How community energy can turbocharge the transition: Government Response

Published 16 September 2026

Energy Security and Net Zero Committee Unlocking community energy at scale Report on parliament.uk ↗

At a glance

The government's response

This document responds to 1st Report - Get connected: How community energy can turbocharge the transition.

This is the government's response, published 16 September 2026.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government welcomes the report and agrees that community energy has an important role, while stating that it "partially agrees" with most recommendations, agrees with two and disagrees with two.

  • It "disagrees" with replacing the Smart Export Guarantee with a Community Energy Export Guarantee, saying a government-set floor price over 15 to 20 years would "create a financial liability". It will "continue to consider" how the SEG can evolve, including consulting on changes.
  • On grid connections it "partially agrees", but does not agree that achieving targets requires departing from ownership neutrality, saying prioritising by ownership could see "shovel-ready" projects deprioritised.
  • On shared ownership it "partially agrees" and plans to consult "later this year" on detailed proposals under the Infrastructure Act 2015. It notes the Act's powers do not allow a 20% stake to be required.
  • On planning, it is "not proposing to amend" the NPPF to make community benefits material considerations, but has consulted on changes so decision-makers "take account of the social and economic benefits" of community energy projects.

Read the government's response ↗ Report an error

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