Written Question·Department for Energy Security and Net Zero·UIN 87669

National Grid: Rural Areas

Tabled: 3 November 2025

Answered: 11 November 2025

Question

Mr Angus MacDonald

Liberal Democrat — Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of difficulties in connecting remote communities to the national electricity grid on rural depopulation.

Answer

Michael Shanks

The Government has not made an assessment of any relationship between connecting to the electricity network and changes in rural populations.