Member of the Enforcement Decision Panel

Location

Cardiff, Glasgow, London

About The Job

Job summary

At Ofgem, we are driving the transformation of Great Britain’s energy landscape, moving towards Net Zero whilst protecting energy consumers - especially vulnerable people. Our enforcement decisions are at the heart of protecting consumers, combating harmful practices, and ensuring fair outcomes across the sector. We’re looking for Enforcement Decision Panel (EDP) Members to help deliver robust, impactful decisions that shape the future of the energy market.

Our compliance and enforcement collective activity, which secured over £190 million in consumer redress last year, underpins this mission by ensuring energy companies uphold their responsibilities and standards.

We’re offering a fixed-term contract until 29/11/2026. You’ll play a pivotal role in our independent EDP, making impartial decisions on complex cases that determine whether energy companies have breached regulations and, if so, the penalties or remedies required. This high-impact role is central to delivering meaningful consequences for non-compliance while driving up industry standards.

EDP members will need to be ready to turn their hand to all manner of intriguing cases that cross their desks: from energy trading markets to the cyber-resilience of our energy infrastructure – the work of the EDP can be as fascinating as it is varied. Its members therefore need to possess the technical nous to traverse the complex range of issues and rules that each case presents; coupled with the conviction to decide their outcome in the face of potentially competing or finely-balanced evidence.

We’re looking for individuals with senior-level expertise in regulated industries, competition law, compliance, or related fields. You will have excellent analytical skills and the ability to analyse, question and objectively assess complex arguments. You should also have a practical approach to problem solving, with the ability to reach fair judgement and make effective decisions based on the evidence and data presented to you.

We have a critical purpose to ensure fairness, accountability, and compliance across the energy sector, delivering credible deterrence and meaningful outcomes for consumers. Join us and help shape a fairer, greener energy system for the future.

Read on and find out more.

Job Description

Ofgem Enforcement

Enforcement plays a central role in helping Ofgem to promote and protect consumers’ interests, ensuring that companies and market participants comply with their obligations. The vision for Ofgem’s enforcement work is to achieve a culture where businesses put energy consumers first and act in line with their obligations. To achieve this vision, we have four broad strategic objectives:

• deliver credible deterrence across the range of our functions, stamping out bad and sharp practice and ensuring fair treatment for all consumers, especially those in vulnerable situations;
• enable competition and innovation, which drives down prices and results in better quality and new products and services for consumers;
• ensure visible and meaningful consequences for businesses and, when appropriate, company directors, who fail consumers and who do not comply; and
• achieve the greatest positive impact by prioritising enforcement resources and using the full range of our powers and regulatory “toolkit”.

Key Responsibilities

• Members of the EDP will be appointed to a case decision panel or a settlement committee by the EDP chair for individual cases. Once appointed to a case decision panel or settlement committee, the role will involve delivering Ofgem's enforcement vision by taking decisions on behalf of the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority (GEMA) as to whether there has been a breach of the relevant licence conditions or other regulatory obligations including energy trading markets, the cyber-resilience of our energy infrastructure and competition laws, deciding whether a penalty should be imposed and if so what level of penalty. In taking these decisions, the panel will act independently from the investigating team, within the framework of Ofgem's policy objectives.
• Using technical nous to traverse the complex range of issues and rules that each case presents; coupled with the conviction to decide their outcome in the face of potentially competing or finely-balanced evidence.
• Specifically for contested cases their role will include:
• considering the written submissions of all the parties;
• conferring with the other members of the committee on the issues raised and on the arrangements for hearing the case and setting the timetable for the case;
• the potential for hearing the parties and assessing evidence presented orally at the hearing;
• reaching the decision on the outcome of the case in terms of whether there has been a breach of the relevant regulations and if so, at what level we should impose a penalty;
• ensuring that the case is conducted fairly and efficiently; and
• preparing or contributing to the draft and final decisions.
• EDP Members will also be expected to keep their knowledge and skills up-to-date, including through training and policy workshops which will be organised by Ofgem.

Person specification

Key Outputs and Deliverables

• Attend relevant EDP panel or settlement committee meetings to consider and decide on recommendations brought by the relevant case teams.
• Make decisions on behalf of GEMA to establish whether energy companies have breached their license conditions or other relevant regulations.
• Make decisions with respect to the appropriate penalty or redress where an energy company has been found to have breached the rules.
• For contested cases, to consider written submissions from all parties, conducting hearings with all parties (where appropriate), setting a timetable for the contested case, and coming to a draft and final decisions.

Role Criteria

Essential

• A recognised position as an expert with senior management level experience (or equivalent) in one or more of the following areas:
• Regulated industry;
• Competition and/or consumer policy;
• Competition law, including experience of the Competition Act 1998;
• Economics (including competition economics);
• Compliance and trading in financial instruments and commodities;
• Cyber security.
• Excellent analytical skills, including the ability to assimilate large quantities of detailed and technical information and to analyse, question, understand and objectively assess complex arguments.
• The ability to reach impartial and objective judgments based on cogent reasoning and assessment of evidence.
• A practical approach to problem solving with the ability to grasp the economic, financial, commercial and legal detail of cases even when the available information isn't comprehensive.
• The ability to work effectively as a team player with other members of the panel and the Secretariat.

Desirable

• Experience of Competition policy and/or Competition law, including experience of the Competition Act 1998 is highly desirable.
• Experience of Cyber Security or policymaking would also be an asset.
• Experience in the gas or electricity sector.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together

Technical Skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Please refer to candidate pack for details.

Benefits

Ofgem can offer you a comprehensive and competitive benefits package which includes; 30 days annual leave after 2 years; Excellent training and development opportunities; The opportunity to join the generous Civil Service pension which also includes a valuable range of benefits; Hybrid working, flexible working hours and family friendly policies. Plus lots of other benefits including clean and bright offices based centrally, engaged networks and teams and an opportunity to contribute to our ambitious and important targets of establishing a Net Zero energy system by 2050. This exciting blend of professional challenge and personal reward identifies career opportunities at Ofgem as something to get excited about.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window) , and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

When you press the ‘Apply now’ button, you will be asked to complete personal details (not seen by the sift panel), your career history and qualifications.

You will then be asked to provide a 1250 word ‘personal statement’ evidencing how you meet the essential and desirable skills and capabilities listed in the role profile. Please ensure you demonstrate clearly, within your supporting statement, how you meet each of the essential and desirable skills and capabilities.

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expect all candidates to abide by these principles. Ofgem take any incidences of cheating very seriously. Please ensure all examples provided are of your own experience. Any instances of plagiarism or other forms of cheating will be investigated and, if proven, the relevant applications will be withdrawn from the process.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.