First Minister has urged the UK Government to
take urgent and meaningful action on high energy bills.
Speaking ahead of the announcement of Ofgem's latest three-month
price cap, Mr Swinney also called for the devolution of energy
powers to allow the Scottish Government to do even more to help
people with the cost of living and ensure Scotland's resources
are used to cut bills.
The First Minister said:
The UK Government came to office promising to cut people's bills
by £300, yet bills are already more than £250 higher and they are
going to increase further as we head into winter. Those higher
costs are causing unnecessary difficulties for families already
struggling with other pressures on household budgets.
Here in Scotland, our support has saved thousands of households
between an estimated £300 and £500 a year. That is evidence of
how we are using our limited powers to help where we can by
investing in more energy efficient homes, tackling fuel poverty
and meeting our ambitious climate change targets.
The UK Government must show it can match this ambition by
providing immediate assistance. Scotland is an energy rich
country, so households should not be worrying about their bills
urgent and meaningful action is needed now. It is clear to me
that we need full control over Scotland's energy resources so we
can bring down bills and help people with the cost of living.
Background
The Scottish Government estimated there would be around 800,000
fuel poor households in Scotland between July and September this
year. That is 31% of all households and an increase of around
110,000 households from estimates for April to June. Estimates
for the new energy price cap period covering October 2026 to
January 2027 will be published in due course.
For those struggling with the cost of living, the Scottish
Government has put a number of measures in place to help,
including support for those in crisis through the Scottish
Welfare Fund and the Scottish Emergency Heating Oil Scheme.
Proposals for targeted bill discounts show that 660,000
households in Scotland would see their estimated fuel bills go
down by an average of £700.
Energy: Social Tariff Working
Group - gov.scot
Scenario Modelling on Social
Energy Tariff Proposal - gov.scot
