It is the responsibility of each National Health Service provider to have resilience plans and procedures in place. Guidance is provided to the NHS within the Health Technical Memorandum 06 series, namely Health Technical Memorandum 06-01: Electrical services supply and distribution, Health Technical Memorandum 06-02: Electrical safety guidance for low voltage systems, and Health Technical Memorandum 06-03: Electrical safety guidance for high voltage systems, which are all respectively available at the following three links:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/electrical-services-supply-and-distribution-htm-06-01/

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/electrical-safety-guidance-for-low-voltage-systems-htm-06-02/

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/electrical-safety-guidance-for-high-voltage-systems-in-healthcare-premises-htm-06-03/

This guidance is for healthcare organisations, defined as organisations that provide or intends to provide healthcare services, and is therefore applicable to primary and secondary care providers.

The information is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

The Royal Air Force currently has no plans to increase the number of generators in use. Any that are unserviceable or require updating will be replaced as necessary.

Residents in rural areas, as well as other areas of the country, rightly expect to have reliable mobile connectivity to participate in the modern digital economy. The Government recognises that events like storms and power outages can have a particular impact on rural communities.

Mobile network operators have legal obligations to put in place appropriate and proportionate measures to ensure the resilience of their networks and services. This is overseen by the independent regulator Ofcom, who have powers to monitor compliance, conduct investigations, issue penalties and enforce remedial actions.

Ofcom have completed a public consultation on power back-up for mobile services across the UK, which gained input from wide range of interested parties including mobile network operators, other industry bodies, local authorities, and members of the public. They published an update on their work in February 2025, setting out the results of their analysis of the resilience of mobile networks, and estimated that the cost of upgrading mobile networks to ensure almost everyone can maintain access to the emergency services for up to 4 hours would be £1 billion. Ofcom also announced they are completing further analysis to determine the appropriate and proportionate measures required to ensure adequate resilience for consumers. The Government looks forward to the rapid conclusion of that work.

The Government is also supporting collaboration between the electricity and telecommunications sectors to deliver measures so that when power cuts occur the likelihood of disruption to telecommunications services is as low as possible, and where disruption does occur it should affect as few people for the shortest possible time.

Residents in rural areas, as well as other areas of the country, rightly expect to have reliable mobile connectivity to participate in the modern digital economy. The Government recognises that events like storms and power outages can have a particular impact on rural communities.

Mobile network operators have legal obligations to put in place appropriate and proportionate measures to ensure the resilience of their networks and services. This is overseen by the independent regulator Ofcom, who have powers to monitor compliance, conduct investigations, issue penalties and enforce remedial actions.

Ofcom have completed a public consultation on power back-up for mobile services across the UK, which identified a particular impact on rural communities. They published an update on their work in February 2025 and announced they are completing further analysis to determine the appropriate and proportionate measures required to ensure adequate resilience for consumers.

The Government is also supporting collaboration between the electricity and telecommunications sectors to deliver measures so that when power cuts occur the likelihood of disruption to telecommunications services is as low as possible, and where disruption does occur it should affect as few people for the shortest possible time.

Residents in rural areas, as well as other areas of the country, rightly expect to have reliable mobile connectivity to participate in the modern digital economy. The Government recognises that events like storms and power outages can have a particular impact on rural communities.

Mobile network operators have legal obligations to put in place appropriate and proportionate measures to ensure the resilience of their networks and services. This is overseen by the independent regulator Ofcom, who have powers to monitor compliance, conduct investigations, issue penalties and enforce remedial actions.

Ofcom have completed a public consultation on power back-up for mobile services across the UK, which identified a particular impact on rural communities. They published an update on their work in February 2025 and announced they are completing further analysis to determine the appropriate and proportionate measures required to ensure adequate resilience for consumers.

The Government is also supporting collaboration between the electricity and telecommunications sectors to deliver measures so that when power cuts occur the likelihood of disruption to telecommunications services is as low as possible, and where disruption does occur it should affect as few people for the shortest possible time.

Residents in rural areas, as well as other areas of the country, rightly expect to have reliable mobile connectivity to participate in the modern digital economy. The Government recognises that events like storms and power outages can have a particular impact on rural communities.

Mobile network operators have legal obligations to put in place appropriate and proportionate measures to ensure the resilience of their networks and services. This is overseen by the independent regulator Ofcom, who have powers to monitor compliance, conduct investigations, issue penalties and enforce remedial actions.

Ofcom have completed a public consultation on power back-up for mobile services across the UK, which identified a particular impact on rural communities. They published an update on their work in February 2025 and announced they are completing further analysis to determine the appropriate and proportionate measures required to ensure adequate resilience for consumers.

The Government is also supporting collaboration between the electricity and telecommunications sectors to deliver measures so that when power cuts occur the likelihood of disruption to telecommunications services is as low as possible, and where disruption does occur it should affect as few people for the shortest possible time.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are the regulator responsible for health and safety, including relevant safety requirements relating to electrical equipment. Government will continue to work closely with HSE to ensure that the highest safety standards are maintained.

The number of water pumps and generators disposed of through the Defence Recycling and Disposals Team (DRDT) from January 2024 to date is as follows:

In line with Ministry of Defence policy, records related to disposals are retained for a period of seven years. Consequently, it is not possible to provide information on disposals through the DRDT prior to 2018. Additionally, due to the way information was recorded by the DRDT prior to September 2023, details on the total number of water pumps and generators disposed of between 2018 and September 2023 could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

It should also be noted that not all disposals are conducted through the DRDT. Identifying the total number of water pumps and generators disposed of through other routes would similarly exceed the disproportionate cost threshold.

The UN and humanitarian agencies estimate that 200,000 litres of fuel a day are needed in Gaza.

We are committed to fully decarbonising the power system by 2035 but we will not be taking any chances with Britain’s energy supply.

Fossil fuel generation such as diesel is used to provide business continuity for infrastructure in the event of disruption to electricity supplies.

Users of diesel generators are required to obtain environmental permits and meet limits on emissions of air pollutants as set out in the Environmental Permitting Regulations (England and Wales) 2016.

The Department does not hold data on the number of mobile phone masts powered by diesel generators. The majority of mobile phone masts draw their power from the National Grid, with a number having a backup diesel generator, and some being permanently powered by diesel generator.

Unipart Logistics is a major National Health Service collaborator and meets regularly with Supply Chain Co-ordination Limited to ensure continuous improvement and to deliver supply chain excellence to NHS trusts. The Department’s Ministers have not met Unipart Logistics to specifically discuss the NHS Carbon Footprint or the use of Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) in the NHS.

The NHS is committed to reducing its reliance on fossil fuels across its estate and fleet and aims to achieve Net Zero for direct emissions by 2040. As part of this, the NHS is working to increase its use of renewable energy sources. This includes exploring the use of biofuels for fleet and standby generators wherever this is appropriate and cost-effective.

I can confirm that the NHS Supply Chain is currently trialling HVO in its vehicles and will be assessing the long-term viability of HVO as a fuel source for its network.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has made no assessment of the health impact of air pollution caused by diesel-powered generators for personal use.

Diesel generators meeting the thresholds prescribed in the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2018 will be subject to an environmental permit issued by the appropriate regulator; the Environment Agency for those under Part A1 of the Regulations and local authorities for those falling under Parts A2 & B of the Regulations, being utilised within a commercial setting.

UKHSA has a Working Together Agreement with the Environment Agency in relation to Environmental Permitting. When consulted, UKHSA provides advice to the Environment Agency on the potential impacts on human health of emissions arising from existing or proposed regulated facilities.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy provided a total of 856 generators to Ukraine over the course of 2022. 569 of these Generators arrived in Ukraine in May 2022, and the additional 287 generators arrived in Ukraine by end of November 2022.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy provided a total of 856 generators to Ukraine. There was a range of capacity in generators provided: 3-9kVA (380), 10-14kVA (42), 15-35kVA (138), 40-50kVA (91), 60-75kVA (91), 80-90kVA (40), 100-175kVA (52), 200-330kVA (19) and 500+kVA (3).

Through the Ukraine Electricity Network Support Taskforce, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has funded the procurement for Ukraine of 856 mobile generators of various models. These have all been delivered to Ukraine, where they are being used to provide power to homes disconnected from the electricity grid. The Prime Minister recently announced £4 million for the International Organisation for Migration in Ukraine. This new support includes the provision of generators for households and collective centres. The UK has also committed £10 million to the Energy Community's Ukraine Energy Support Fund. Since March 2022, the Energy Community has been coordinating business-to-business donations of specialised equipment for repairs, including generators and replacements for damaged infrastructure.

Under NATO's Comprehensive Assistance Package (CAP) for Ukraine, the UK and NATO Allies are working to provide urgent non-lethal support to Ukraine to meet specific requests, including practical support for the winter months. The UK recently announced a £10 million contribution to the CAP to ensure it has the resources required to respond to requests. Bilaterally, the UK has provided £22 million of support: £7 million for 856 generators to reconnect vital facilities; £10 million to the Energy Community's support fund to repair infrastructure; and £5 million for safety equipment for the civil nuclear sector. We work in close coordination with NATO Allies on support.

All 850 generators have been delivered to Ukraine, where they are being used to provide power to homes currently disconnected from the electricity grid.

The Foreign Secretary met with G7 Foreign Ministers on 3-4 November to discuss practical support as Ukraine prepares for winter, including coordinated efforts to help repair and defend Ukraine's energy and water facilities following Russian attacks on critical infrastructure.

In March 2022, BEIS set up a Ukraine Electricity Network Support Taskforce, involving distribution network operators and the Energy Networks Association. Through this Taskforce, BEIS has funded the procurement of more than 850 mobile generators for Ukraine.

The Government engages with industry leaders on a range of issues, including energy security and net zero. It is not Government policy to publish Ministerial correspondence.