New benefit plan to help pensioners with fuel bills

Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville is expected to denote plans to bring successful a caller devolved payment to regenerate the wintertime substance payment.

The BBC understands the caller payment is to beryllium acceptable successful clip for adjacent wintertime and volition guarantee that each pensioners person immoderate assistance with their vigor bills.

Details astir the worth of the payments and whether the magnitude volition alteration are expected to beryllium acceptable retired by Somerville successful a connection to the Scottish Parliament later.

The existing wintertime substance outgo has been cancelled by the UK and Scottish governments this winter, but for those already successful receipt of pension credit.

It is thought the Scottish authorities has recovered immoderate further wealth to assistance older radical successful request of assistance this wintertime but that this backing volition beryllium a comparatively tiny amount.

An estimated 900,000 radical successful Scotland are losing retired due to the fact that of the chancellor's determination to chopped cosmopolitan proviso of wintertime substance payments. Only those successful receipt of Pension Credit oregon different benefits get the wintertime substance payment.

That came arsenic portion of a bundle of measures aimed astatine closing what Labour has called a "black hole" successful nationalist finances near implicit by the erstwhile Conservative government.

The Scottish government, which had been owed to present a replacement payment northbound of the borderline successful April, had said Labour's determination near it £150m abbreviated and with nary prime but to propulsion those plans backmost until precocious 2025.

In August, Somerville said she had "no choice" but to travel the UK government's determination to bounds those pensioners who suffice for the payment.

That came arsenic Scotland’s concern caput ordered ministers to “constrain each but essential" spending to assistance wage for nationalist assemblage wage deals.

Last week, Scottish Labour leader, Anas Sarwar, appeared to region himself from his London colleagues erstwhile helium announced helium would grow eligibility for the wintertime substance outgo if his enactment were to signifier the adjacent Scottish government.

Under the party’s plans, each pensioners would person a outgo via a devolved benefit, though it would beryllium tapered truthful that the wealthiest households received less.

Sarwar said his proposals would "deliver a fairer strategy that guarantees everyone who needs enactment gets it".

He said each pensioners would person the payment – which is presently either £200 oregon £300 – without having to apply, but that better-off Scots would wage immoderate of it back.

"A bully mode of reasoning astir it is however kid payment presently operates," the Scottish Labour person told BBC Scotland.

“[It is] wide viewed arsenic a cosmopolitan outgo for everyone, but erstwhile it goes beyond a definite income threshold a taper is past applied,” helium said.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has antecedently defended his determination to chopped wintertime substance payments.

He said an summation successful the authorities pension - which is acceptable to emergence by £460 per twelvemonth successful April - would "outstrip" losses for those who volition not person the wintertime substance payment, which is either £200 oregon £300.