20 Years of the Energy Ombudsman

That the Parliament recognises the 20th anniversary of the Energy Ombudsman; understands that, following concerns about energy billing and switching processes, the Energy Supply Ombudsman Scheme was launched in July 2006; notes that the scheme was voluntary, applied only to the six largest energy suppliers, dealt solely with billing and switching complaints, and handled just over 2,000 complaints in its first year; further notes that, in 2008, participation became mandatory for all licensed energy suppliers, extending access to independent dispute resolution across all aspects of energy supply services; welcomes the subsequent expansion of the Energy Ombudsman's remit to include consumers using heat networks and small businesses with up to 50 employees; recognises what it sees as the vital role that the Energy Ombudsman plays in supporting consumer confidence in the energy market by providing a free-to-use, independent and impartial dispute resolution service while identifying systemic issues to help drive improvements across the sector; welcomes recent announcements designed to shorten complaint journey times, strengthen decision-making, improve access to the service and enhance consumer compensation, and congratulates the Energy Ombudsman on supporting more than one million energy consumers over the past two decades.