To ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he intends to set a limit on the amount of North sea gas which will be allocated for burning in existing or future electricity generating stations.

We do not intend to limit the amount of gas from the UKCS for gas-fired electricity generation. The Government do not believe that we should discourage gas burn. It is one of our major objectives to encourage competition in generation and we welcome the growing interest in gas-fired capacity from the private sector.