Under European Directives, all member states are required to install 'intelligent metering systems' - smart meters - to at least 80% of domestic electricity consumers by 2020. The UK Government opting for a more challenging programme, plans for energy suppliers to install smart electricity and gas meters in all homes and smaller non-domestic premises in Great Britain by 2019. 

The The Commons Public Accounts Committee has published its 63rd Report of the Session, on the basis on evidence from the Department for Energy and Climate Change, Citizens Advice, Which?  and EDF Energy. 

The six main issues highlighted in the Commons 63rd report were:

•  Consumers will have to pay energy suppliers for the costs of installing smart meters through their energy bills, but many of the benefits will pass in the first instance to the energy suppliers. 

•  The benefits of smart meters can only be fully realised if there is widespread take-up and consumers use them to reduce their energy bills, yet the role of suppliers in helping to achieve this remains undefined. 

• Trials so far have been inconclusive about consumers' willingness to cooperate with the installation process and to use smart meters to reduce their energy consumption. 

• The data communications service required to link smart meters to suppliers is a complex IT project that may cost as much as £3bn

•  The Department and energy suppliers face significant challenges to install smart meters in every home in the country.

Finally: "There are issues around cyber security which need to be addressed if confidence in this new technology is to be gained by the population, who are expected to have smart meters in their home and pay for them."