New consultation on proposals to extend, expand, and reform the Warm Home Discount scheme to 2026 has been launched.
The Warm Home Discount scheme obliges participating energy suppliers to provide rebates to their customers, to reduce energy bills for low-income and vulnerable households and tackle fuel poverty.
This consultation proposes to expand and reform the scheme in England and Wales until 2026, in line with the commitments announced in the Energy White Paper in 2020.
The Government committed in the White Paper to extending the Warm Home Discount until 2026 at least, expanding the spending envelope from around £350 million to
£475 million annually (in 2020 prices), and proposing reforms for improving the targeting of the scheme.
Alongside this, the Government has extended the scheme for the 2021/22 scheme year, to allow time to consult on these proposed future reforms.
Since its beginning in 2011, the Warm Home Discount scheme has provided over £3 billion in rebates to low-income and vulnerable households.
The reforms seek is to improve the fuel poverty targeting rate of the scheme and ensure more fuel poor households can receive rebates on their energy bills automatically through data matching.
This consultation sets out the Government’s proposals for reforming the scheme in England
and Wales, alongside consulting on certain reserved powers with regards to Scotland.
Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) would particularly welcome responses from energy suppliers and charities and other organisations focusing on fuel poverty and vulnerable people.
The Government will take into account the responses and lay regulations to ensure a scheme is in place from 2022 onwards.
This consultation closes at
More information about this consultation is available on the government website.
