Member

We know there are some concerns about pensioners affording energy bills this winter, and we agree no one should be unable to heat their home. This action on pension credit comes on top of other commitments to support pensioner households. Of course, energy bills are tough: the price cap has gone up. But, compared to last autumn, they are £117 pounds lower, and bills have fallen over the last two years. We also provide a warm home discount, which gives a £150 rebate on electricity bills for eligible low-income households, including 850,000 pensioners. Crucially, we found the money to extend the household support fund. The truth is that, with any threshold, there are always hard cases above it, and that is where discretionary pots of money come in. Please encourage people to go to their council for help. We will also use our warm home plan to reduce bills and slash fuel poverty by upgrading millions more homes with low-carbon heating and better insulation.