Meeting of the Parliament 13 November 2024
I am grateful for the opportunity to discuss the draft regulations, which will introduce our 16th Scottish benefit—the pension-age winter heating payment. Mirroring the United Kingdom Government’s winter fuel payment, our pension-age winter heating payment will provide targeted support to those of pension age who are in receipt of relevant benefits in Scotland.
We have faced significant challenges to get to this point. As members well know, on 29 July, the UK Government announced its decision to restrict entitlement to the winter fuel payment from this winter to those in receipt of pension credit and other means-tested benefits. The chancellor’s decision was taken without notice and will reduce this year’s block grant adjustment funding by £147 million, which is more than 80 per cent of the cost of our previously proposed universal payment.
We have repeatedly urged the UK Government to reverse that decision. Indeed, the Parliament has supported us in doing so, but our representations have not met with success. Given the budgetary implications of such a significant reduction in funding from the UK Government, we have taken the difficult decision to mirror that approach in our pension-age winter heating payment.