Warm Home Discount - IPPR response to First Utility research

Jimmy Aldridge, IPPR Associate Director on energy and climate change, responding to new research from First Utility on the way large energy suppliers treat customers on the Warm Home Discount, said:

"Nobody in modern Britain should have to choose between heating and eating but for millions of householders it will be a reality this winter.

"Government support to protect these householders has been cut in recent years and so it is vital that the remaining support is used wisely. Currently, much of this funding is being wasted through the Warm Homes Discount because the vast majority of consumers who receive it are also stuck on the most expensive energy tariffs.

"Any consumer in receipt of the Warm Homes Discount should automatically be moved onto the cheapest deals. This would triple the benefit to those in fuel poverty and be a far more efficient use of scant funding – helping the support to reach more households."

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Contact

Kieren Walters 07921 403651 k.walters@ippr.org

Editor's Note:

IPPR is an independent registered charity and Britain’s leading progressive think tank. It is dedicated to the better country that Britain can be. With nearly 60 staff across four offices throughout the UK, IPPR is Britain’s only national think tank with a truly national presence. Our independent research covers the economy, work, housing, education, health, migration, energy, transport, devolution and democracy among other areas.