The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero published a policy paper, "Putting consumers first: empowering and protecting energy consumers", on 24 May 20241. The department says the plan sets out how the government aims to empower and protect consumers in the retail energy market, increasing transparency and competition, and enhancing consumer protection1. It was published under the 2022 to 2024 Sunak Conservative government1.
The document runs to 18 pages and is available as a PDF of 209 KB, alongside an HTML version1. The department's summary states:
"This plan sets out how the government aims to empower and protect consumers in the retail energy market, increasing transparency and competition, and enhancing consumer protection."
The published details list three areas of work1:
| Measure | Description as given |
|---|---|
| Smart metering code of practice | Development of a new code of practice |
| Price comparison | Investigating how to make it easier for consumers to compare energy prices between different offerings and tariffs |
| Supplier performance data | Working with Ofgem on the publication of a wider range of supplier performance data |
No further measures, funding figures, deadlines or named suppliers appear in the published details1. The paper sits within the wider framework of UK home energy regulation and policy, which is overseen by DESNZ. Energy policy in Wales and Scotland is partly devolved, and the paper does not state how the measures would apply in each nation1.
Why it matters for households
The three measures touch on points where a household's control over its own energy costs is weakest. A smart metering code of practice concerns the equipment installed in the home and the data it produces, which underpins how a household sees and manages its own consumption1. Work on price comparison concerns the ability to check whether a different offering or tariff would cost less, a step that depends on being able to compare like with like1. Publishing a wider range of supplier performance data concerns what a household can know about how a supplier behaves before and after signing up1.
Taken together, the plan is aimed at the information a household holds rather than at the price it pays. The paper does not set out any change to standing charges, unit rates, the price cap or support payments, and no such figures are given1. Whether the measures would change what any individual household pays has not been reported1.
What happens next
The paper sets out areas of work rather than a timetable. No dates for the smart metering code of practice, the price comparison work or the supplier performance data are given in the published details1. The next steps, and any consultation or implementation dates, have not been reported1.