Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his planned timetable is for payments to begin under the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding in England.

Applications for the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding (EBSS AF) are expected to open later in January and will remain open until the end of April. Those who are eligible for the EBSS AF will need to submit a short form via the government's GOV.UK pages, and their details will be shared with local authorities across England, Scotland, and Wales who will deliver the one-off, non-repayable support this winter. The exact date that an eligible household will receive support will depend on when the application is made and when the payment can be processed by the relevant local authority.