We communicate widely and regularly with many UK political institutions, specifically Members of Parliament, Government departments, the Greater London Authority and other local authorities.
As a major UK energy company, we aim to understand the views of our stakeholders, especially MPs, and we’re keen to explain our experiences when we can. We aim to:
- ensure MPs have a good understanding of us and our business
- understand their views more fully
- explain how we can help them support their constituents.
We mostly communicate with MPs whose constituents are affected by our operations, or who are interested in energy policy issues.
We also deal with government departments, principally the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Treasury.
We maintain a close relationship with our industry’s regulatory body, Ofgem, as their decisions can fundamentally affect our business. We’re committed to investing more than £2 billion of capital investment in our networks, as agreed in Ofgem’s last Distribution Price Control Review. 2007 is a key year in making assessments for the next review, which will help establish the framework for industry-wide investment and income levels for the five years from 2010.
In 2006 and 2007, Ofgem recognised our work to improve customer service to vulnerable people with awards of £300,000 both years. They’re encouraging companies to focus on areas of work not easily measured: communication strategies, priority customer care and corporate social responsibility.
We contribute to all major energy policy areas, addressing security of energy supply, climate change and supporting vulnerable (fuel-poor) customers. These issues are represented in legislation like the Energy, Planning and Climate Change Acts.