Fifth of Scots households got energy bill help

MORE than one in five households in Scotland have received help from the Scottish Government and energy companies to reduce their heating bills, new figures showed today.

The Scottish government made £79m available to combat fuel poverty. Picture: Getty

More than 540,000 homes received free or subsidised professionally installed cavity wall or loft insulation through the Carbon Emission

Reduction Target scheme – an initiative which places an obligation on electricity and gas suppliers to tackle energy efficiency and fuel poverty.

The Scottish Government has made available £79 million to tackle fuel poverty over the next year.

Scotland’s Housing Minister Margaret Burgess said the Energy Savings Trust figures showed more help was now available to help families cope with fuel costs.

She said: “Scotland is an energy rich nation and everyone should be able to live in a warm and affordable home that doesn’t cost the earth to heat.

“This government is doing all it can to help people cut their energy bills and through its partnership work with energy suppliers over half a million households have been assisted to improve energy efficiency.

“These statistics released today are further evidence of the work we are doing to help customers struggling to pay their energy bills.”