Director General of Electricity Supply (Hansard, 22 May 1989)

§ Mr. Parkinson

Subject to Parliament approving the Electricity Bill, I and my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland intend to appoint Professor Stephen Littlechild, currently head of the department of industrial economics and business studies at the University of Birmingham, to be the Director General of Electricity Supply. His formal appointment will be made as soon as possible after Royal Assent and will run initially for a period of five years.

The Director General will have a key role in making the privatised industry function in a competitive, customer sensitive way. He will be responsible for the price control formulae which will govern the supply and transmission of electricity. He will have a particular duty to promote the efficient use of electricity, reflected in a specific condition in the public electricity supply companies' licences. He will have a duty to foster competition and prevent discrimination. He must ensure that the relevant provisions of the Electricity Bill and various licences are observed and, if necessary, modified. He will be responsible for the consumer protection and representation arrangements, and for the electricity meter examining service which will be transferred to the Office of Electricity Regulation from my Department. He will also monitor the non-fossil fuel obligation and the operation of the fossil fuel levy in England and Wales.

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Professor Littlechild has extensive experience of regulatory issues both in the United Kingdom and abroad. He has worked on the regulatory regime for British Telecom, has been a member of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission for six years, and has a wide knowledge of regulatory systems both here and in the United States of America. He is admirably qualified for the post and my right hon. and learned Friend and I are very happy that he has accepted the job.