Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Industry Initiative component of the Warm Home Discount scheme.

Ofgem administer the Warm Home Discount Scheme Industry Initiatives of behalf of the Department. Their most recent assessment was for winter 2023/24 where Industry Initiatives delivered £76.4 million in support (£65.5 million in England & Wales and £10.9 million in Scotland) – an increase of £44.3 million compared with winter 2022/23. These initiatives supported over 2.8 million consumers across Great Britain by providing a range of services, including energy efficiency measures, energy and smart meter advice, debt assistance, benefit checks, and financial assistance payments.

The Department sets the overall policy and spending targets for the scheme, but the financial responsibility for Industry Initiatives lies with the suppliers. In 2023/24, 47 Industry Initiatives were funded in England & Wales and 25 in Scotland. The services and their associated consumer support values included:

• Energy efficiency measures: £21.79m (England & Wales)
• Energy advice: £11.63m (England & Wales), £2.47m (Scotland)
• Debt assistance: £11.51m (England & Wales), £1.17m (Scotland)
• Financial assistance payments: £9.72m (England & Wales), £4.35m (Scotland)
• Benefit checks: £5.01m (England & Wales), £0.66m (Scotland)
• Mobile homes: £0.84m (England & Wales), £0.21m (Scotland)
• Referrals: £0.06m (England & Wales)
• Over 1.7 million consumers were supported in England & Wales and nearly 1.1 million in Scotland.

For more detailed information on this latest assessment, please visit https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/warm-home-discount-annual-report-scheme-year-13