Ofgem will be legally required to consider the UK’s net-zero carbon emissions target in all decision making, after the UK Government backed down to widespread pressure.

The legal mandate is included within an amendment to the Energy Bill. The Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ) has said it will amend the regulator’s existing duties to include a reference to the net zero targets outlined in the Climate Change Act 2008.

The new statutory duty will require Ofgem to consider how its decisions assist meeting the Government’s net-zero targets.

It will strengthen the regulator’s existing duty to reduce greenhouse gases by forcing Ofgem to consider how its everyday regulatory decisions may assist in meeting the UK’s net zero targets and the carbon budgets laid out in the 2008 legislation.

Wording in Ofgem’s duties about cutting greenhouse gas emissions will be replaced with a specific reference to the Climate Change Act. The new duty will come into force two months after the passage of the Energy Bill, which is currently making its way through Parliament.

Critics have argued that not having net-zero as a core duty means that Ofgem has tended to prioritise cutting consumers’ bills over potentially more costly investments in the electricity network, which could help the more effective delivery of net zero.