Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the eligibility criteria for the Warm Home Discount Scheme to include women on maternity leave who do not qualify for means-tested benefits.

The Warm Home Discount prioritises people who are most at risk of being in fuel poverty. Fuel poverty is a combination of low incomes and high energy costs, so the scheme is targeted at those on means tested benefits whose homes are expensive to heat. Women on maternity leave do not automatically fall into that category.