Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an estimate of the number of people in Carmarthenshire living in areas supplied by mains gas who were eligible for the Alternative Fuel Payment but who have not applied for their entitlement.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The Alternative Fuel Payment (AFP) scheme delivered payments of £200 to households who use alternative fuels such as heating oil, liquefied petroleum gas, coal or biomass, helping around 2 million off-gas-grid households to meet their energy costs. The scheme particularly supported households in rural areas that are not connected to the gas grid.

Over 85% of eligible households received the payment automatically via their electricity supplier during February, and a small proportion of households needed to apply for the AFP, for example when households in their local area predominantly use electricity or mains gas for their heating.