Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)

My Lords, I thank noble Lords again for a good debate, with some incisive observations made by noble Lords opposite. This Government are steadfastly committed to deploying renewables in order to achieve our ambition for clean power by 2030 and to protect bill payers both now and in future. The instrument under discussion today will enable us to adapt CfDs so that they can support the delivery of our ambition for clean power by 2030 at the lowest cost to consumers. Having said that, let me respond to the questions posed by the noble Lord, Lord Frost. In an unstable world, the only ways both to guarantee our energy security and to protect bill payers permanently are to keep energy bills down for good and to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels towards home-grown, clean energy. During periods when wholesale electricity prices are higher than the fixed CfD strike price awarded, generators pay the difference back into the scheme, which can help reduce energy bills. This happened when wholesale electricity prices spiked during the energy bill crisis of 2022-23; over that winter, CfD payments reduced the amount needed to fund government energy support schemes by around £18 for a typical household. The budget underspend that has been referred to is a result of the allocation—