Low-Income Families: Energy Cost Support

Lord Wood of Anfield Excerpts

Tuesday 6th September 2022 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Wood of Anfield]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what further support they plan to provide for low-income families who do not pay income tax, to help meet their rising energy costs.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Lord Callanan) (Con)]

My Lords, we are making necessary preparations to ensure that a new Government will have options to deliver additional support as quickly as possible. Further to the support measures announced in May, the Government will of course continue to support low-income and fuel-poor households with their energy bills through the warm home discount, winter fuel payments and the cold weather payments scheme to ensure that the most vulnerable are better able to heat their homes over the cold winter months.

[Lord Wood of Anfield (Lab)]

My Lords, the incoming Prime Minister spent the summer repeatedly pledging income tax cuts, yet 43% of adults, including those in the greatest need, pay no income tax and would not benefit from this. Meanwhile, her pledge to reverse the national insurance rise will give the poorest 10% of households £7.60 per year and the richest 10% £1,800 per year. When asked about this, the new Prime Minister said,

“to look at everything through the lens of redistribution … is wrong”.

Does the Minister think it fair at a time of such widespread fear among low-income households to prioritise income tax cuts that would give the most frightened families no help whatsoever?

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

The noble Lord is commenting on proposals that he has not yet seen. The House will not have long to wait, and a lot of options have been worked on over the summer. As well as putting preparations in place for the Energy Bills Support Scheme, which I remind the House will be rolled out from 1 October in a series of monthly payments, other options have been prepared. The energy price rise is unprecedented, and we all know the reasons for that. The noble Lord will have to be patient and wait and see what we announce.