Ofgem did not strike the right balance between promoting competition in the energy suppliers market and ensuring energy suppliers were financially resilient. During the 2010s, Ofgem focused on attracting new firms to the sector to increase competition and reduce costs to consumers. Issues first began to emerge with the financial resilience of new entrants in 2018 but Ofgem did not tighten requirements for new suppliers until 2019, and for existing energy suppliers until 2021. Ofgem acknowledges that it should have tightened requirements earlier, but has found it complex to negotiate with the sector the appropriate balance between competition and resilience. In December 2021, Ofgem published an action plan on financial resilience and in April 2022 it published proposals on measures such as ring-fencing customer credit balances and Renewables Option payments. Many energy firms support Ofgem’s measures to improve financial resilience, and some would support even more stringent measures. Others, however, are concerned that Ofgem’s reforms could lower competition and lead to bigger bills. Ofgem accepts there are trade- offs it needs to consider between resilience and competition and is developing a framework to help it manage these. Recommendation: Ofgem should write to the Committee within six months setting out how it will monitor and balance levels of competition and resilience in the energy supplier market, particularly once government intervention in the energy market recedes, which could enable greater competition than is currently possible.