Generation Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry said that she is confident that the UK can meet its fourth and fifth carbon budgets in the timeframe it has been given, when speaking to a Commons Science and Technology Committee evidence hearing. Perry said an acceleration of policy delivery and reduction in technology costs meant the UK was 95% of the way towards achieving the fourth budget and 93% towards the fifth.

The government published its response to the Capacity Market (CM) Technical Consultation on 28 February, following the suspension of the CM in November 2018 after a ruling by the General Court of the European Court of Justice. In its response, the government outlined several draft regulations including for conducting a replacement capacity auction for delivery in 2019/20.

Attention continued to focus on the fate of the UK’s suspended flagship energy security scheme – the Capacity Market. Government Ministers have stated they expect to get reapproval from the EU later in 2019, while industry has put forward plans for the costs of the scheme to continue to be collected to protect industry and energy users from a price shock when the scheme is reinstated.