Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 9
9
Acknowledged
Delays experienced in providing energy bill support to off-grid and rural households.
Conclusion
We asked the Department what were the causes of other delays in getting support to customers. The Former Permanent Secretary told us that, in terms of operational challenges, the most difficult schemes were those where people were being asked to apply. For example, the Department launched its portal for 900,000 consumers without a direct relationship to a domestic energy supplier, such as those in park homes, to apply for the EBSS Alternative Funding route for both Great Britain and Northern Ireland on 27 February 2023. The Former Permanent Secretary explained that the Department needed to establish a process and identify a source of data to verify whether applicants for the EBSS Alternative Funding Route had already received support through the main EBSS.18 They also explained that a small number of households will also have to apply for the domestic Alternative Fuel Payment Scheme, for example, consumers who are fully off- grid or households who use alternative fuels for heating in areas where the majority of households are using heating methods supported by the main scheme. Subsequence to our evidence session, the Department opened its portal for these households in early March 2023.19 The delay in getting the support to off-grid consumers affected more rural homes than in urban areas. We received written evidence from the Countryside Alliance which told us that in 2020, 53% of rural homes were off the gas grid compared to just 10% of urban properties.20
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the observation, outlining its swift actions and the inherent complexity of delivering support, particularly for application-based schemes, and is seeking to learn lessons for future delivery.
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
1.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Autumn 2023 1.2 The government acted swiftly to provide support to UK households and delivered almost £40 billion of energy bills support through different schemes from October 2022 to March 2023, an unprecedented pace of intervention. This extensive experience in delivering household support and the valuable lessons learned are now underpinning government planning on a range of possible scenarios for next winter. 1.3 The government prioritised quickly reaching as many UK households as possible, which was inherently complex, with greater challenges associated with certain households. People not covered by domestic electricity supply arrangements or off the gas grid (or both) are harder to reach and designing and delivering bespoke application-based solutions for them took time. Additional steps were required, for example to develop and implement application systems, checks to guard against fraud and error and to safeguard public money. Local authorities delivered these schemes in Great Britain, which took time deciding eligibility and handling applications securely. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (the department) is seeking to learn lessons on delivery routes and communications so that future schemes could better serve consumers, in particular those who are vulnerable in terms of their personal circumstances or their energy use.