§ Mrs. BrintonTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the rate of progress in the reform of the electricity pool. [84641]
§ Mr. BattleThe White Paper on 'Fuel Sources for Power Generation (Cm 4071)' published in October 1998 confirmed the Government's intention to proceed with the replacement of the Electricity Pool with new trading arrangements. Work to develop the details of the new market arrangements is being led by DTI and Offer with strong industry and consumer involvement. I expect this development work to be complete in July. The final date for the full implementation of the new market will be announced in the light of that work.