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Energy Bill

Five years is not a constraint; it is a period within which action will be taken. I am indicating to the noble Lord the steps that we are taking regarding the medium-sized business sector, so that we can be in a position to progress quickly, as the Committee is suggesting. I emphasise that the issues are infinitely greater than that, particularly when it comes to the domestic sector. There is a case for a rollout of smart meters to small business. This is a complex area, and it is necessary that the Government do the analysis thoroughly because, as the noble Lord was generous enough to recognise when he proposed the amendment, there are substantial costs involved. I will indicate our version of those costs, which I assure the noble Lord is not to minimise the problem. Our initial analysis of the costs and benefits, which is in the process of being tested, includes further work with stakeholders to ensure that it is robust, before making final policy decisions. Again, the powers in this Bill would underpin this rollout, should we proceed. Regarding small business, we are talking about 2.4 million meters, and 210,000 meters for medium-sized business. In answer to the estimates that my noble friend Lord O’Neill gave when he was identifying the dimensions for the domestic sector, we consider that there would be 47 million meters involved, affecting every home in the United Kingdom. The difference between that and the 170,000 electricity meters and 40,000 gas meters that are needed for medium-sized business are obviously enormous. On our present analysis, there is not a positive business case for proceeding with a domestic rollout. The current estimated costs for domestic rollout are in the range of £8 billion to £14 billion over 20 years, and there is uncertainty about the expected benefits. By any stretch of the imagination, those are very substantial sums of money indeed. That is why the Government are right to proceed with that necessary caution, which involves us in doing a full cost-benefit analysis of those concepts.