The UK Government has said it is working to deliver the £400 Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS) to people who do not have a direct electricity connection with their supplier “as soon as possible”. This includes private tenants with an all-inclusive rental agreement and people living in park homes or a houseboat.
The funding is due to be paid through the EBSS Alternative Funding Payment, but no specific date or details of the application process has been announced yet. Last month, the UK Government said it was “working urgently” with local authorities and Devolved Administrations to finalise the details of providing the £400 EBSS to people this winter.
At the time, Energy Minister Graham Stuart MP said: “The Government is working urgently with a range of organisations, such as local authorities, as well as Devolved Administrations and across UK Government, to finalise the details and have the process up and running for applications this winter.”
Last week, Labour MP Mark Tami, asked whether the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Grant Shapps, has made any assessment of the financial impact of the delay in issuing the £400 to households without a direct energy supply.
Minister for Climate, Graham Stuart also responded to this query and said: “The Department has made no such assessment. The Government is working to deliver this support through the EBSS Alternative Funding as soon as possible.”
Households using oil or LPG to heat their homes are also still waiting on a £200 payment to help with fuel costs this winter.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt doubled the support for homes using alternative fuel sources from £100 to £200 in his Autumn Statement earlier this month, in recognition of the pressures caused by rising fuel costs.
Mr Stuart said that this too will be paid to households “as soon as possible” adding that the UK Government will announce further information on the delivery and timing of these payments “in due course”.
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