As ever, today’s announcements made by the Chancellor will take a while to digest, once further details are made available. But there are always some key soundbites listeners are keen to hear. Here are a couple of our favourite moments:

1. Household Support Fund

Originally knows as the “COVID Winter Grant Scheme” this fund has been around since 2020, providing Local Authorities with additional funding to help support vulnerable residents. A lot of the money has been provided to ensure children can access food, and to help elderly residents better afford to keep warm over the Winter. Energy Projects Plus has been working with multiple Local Authority partners to deliver some aspects of the Household Support Fund, such as:

• Emergency fuel vouchers for low-income prepay customers at risk of self-disconnection
• Payments to energy suppliers of non-prepay customers, struggling with their bills
• Reducing/clearing utility debts
• Repairing/replacing faulty heating systems

While energy bills are starting to fall, there hasn’t been as quick a drop as would be required to remove energy bill concerns from the minds of millions of residents around the country. We therefore welcome the 6 month extension of the Household Support Fund. 

2. Energy Production Windfall Tax

Many people are unaware that our energy suppliers have been struggling to survive these past few years, as the prices they have to pay for gas have often been higher than they’re legally allowed to sell it to us for.

This is why dozens of UK energy suppliers have collapsed since the prices started shooting up, at the end of 2019.

The “gas giants” like BP and Shell have seen massive rises in their profits, and we welcome the Chancellor’s decision to continue the windfall tax levied on these profits, for another year to 2029.