The primary focus of this administration is to address the cost-of-living crisis impacting our nation. We are committed to supporting families facing financial difficulties by taking action. As part of our efforts, we extended the Warm Home Discount to all individuals receiving means-tested benefits last year, offering a £150 energy bill rebate to approximately 6 million households, representing one in five families nationwide.

Today, we are pleased to announce that eligible families will receive this discount every winter throughout the next decade. Additionally, we are streamlining the process for thousands of families in Scotland to automatically receive this assistance for the first time next winter.

In addition to these measures, we recently announced a reduction in household bills by an average of £150 starting in April. Furthermore, our Warm Homes Plan, the largest public investment in home upgrades in British history, will introduce technologies such as solar panels to lower bills for millions of households and potentially lift up to a million families out of fuel poverty.

While we are actively supporting those in need, we recognize that the high costs are a result of the country’s dependence on fossil fuel markets controlled by petrostates and dictators. To address this issue, we are increasing investments in domestically produced clean energy from renewables and nuclear sources.

Our decisions are all geared towards combating the affordability crisis, aiming to lower bills both now and in the long term.