As Oldham Borough residents face massive hikes in fuel bills this winter, local Liberal Democrats are furious that the Warm Homes Discount, which helps our poorest residents heat their homes, will only go up by £10.

Liberal Democrat councillors Hazel Gloster and Dave Murphy will be calling upon Oldham Council at the next meeting (15 December 2021) to support a demand to the UK Government that the Warm Homes Discount be increased to meet the new reality.

Councillor Hazel Gloster will be proposing the motion:  “Homeowners face up to 40% price increases this year while many of our oldest and poorest residents have seen the Conservative Government betray their promise to increase state pensions by the Triple Lock and also scrap the £20-per-week Universal Credit top-up for the needy.” 

“For many people, this winter will be a time of survival as they struggle to heat and eat, but the Warm Homes Discount which at least represents some additional funding for making ends meet, is now wholly inadequate to the task.”

Councillor Dave Murphy is supporting a motion to the Council.  He added:  “Whilst we welcome the fact that the government have promised to make more households eligible for the Warm Homes Discount, the £10 increase is wholly inadequate given the unprecedented increases in fuel bills this year.” 

“The £140 Warm Homes Discount has not been properly adjusted to reflect increased gas and electricity prices for nine years and in that time household bills have sky-rocketed.  And many people do not even know it exists.  Oldham Liberal Democrats are calling on the government to increase this grant by a meaningful, rather than a marginal, amount, and do more to ensure that those who can get it can access the cash.”

You can contact Warm Homes Oldham on:

Freephone: 0800 019 1084

E-mail: warmhomes@oldham.gov.uk

https://www.oldham.gov.uk/info/200258/housing_benefit_grants_and_loans/1979/help_to_heat_your_home

Council 15 December 2021 – Notice of Opposition Business

Liberal Democrat Motion – Increasing and promoting the Warm Home Discount

This Council notes:

• The Warm Home Discount Scheme, a Government initiative administered by energy suppliers, provides eligible households with a £140 discount on their electricity bill between September and March each year which has remained fixed for over 9 years.

• Energy prices have increased significantly in recent years, with the costs of energy increasing by 40% in the last year alone.

• Additionally, Ofgem has recently set an unprecedented price cap hike, a measure which the End Fuel Poverty Coalition has predicted will propel a further 1.2 million people into fuel poverty (up from 4.1 million to 5.3 million).

• Following a consultation earlier this year, the government has pledged to increase the rebate in England and Wales and to expand the scheme so that an additional 780,000 households become eligible. 

Council believes:

• That the Warm Home Discount is vital in helping to tackle fuel poverty.

• The £10 increase is wholly inadequate given price inflation over the last nine years and the increases proposed in the future.

• That many eligible households are not aware of the discount or how to apply for it.

 This Council resolves:

• To ask the Chief Executive to write to the Minister of State at the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy to urgently increase the value of the Warm Home Discount Scheme to reflect price inflation and future increases and to identify new ways to promote the rebate so many more eligible households are aware of it and apply for it.

Proposed by:                                                               Seconded by:

Councillor Hazel Gloster                                                Councillor Dave Murphy