The Scottish Government has renewed calls for urgent UK Government action to help households struggling with rising energy costs.
Climate Action Minister Alasdair Allan has pressed Westminster to adopt key recommendations from the Social Tariff Working Group aimed at tackling fuel poverty head-on.
The plea comes as the first statutory three-year report on fuel poverty is released under the Fuel Poverty Act (2019).
It coincides with yet another hike in Ofgem’s energy price cap, deepening concerns for vulnerable households.
Dr Allan stressed the Scottish Government’s efforts to tackle the crisis within its limited devolved powers.
He highlighted steps taken to boost household incomes, reform social security, and offer targeted support through the heat in buildings schemes.
But despite progress in areas under Holyrood’s control, fuel poverty rates have worsened since 2021.
Dr Allan pointed to two key reasons for the rise.
The first is the surge in energy prices, which has outpaced gains in energy efficiency and income levels.
He warned that fuel poverty would be falling if not for volatile fuel costs.
The second is the UK Government’s failure to intervene where it alone holds power—energy pricing and fiscal policy.
He said only Westminster has the tools to deliver the scale of change needed to eradicate fuel poverty in Scotland.
The Social Tariff Working Group, a coalition of energy firms, consumer bodies and disability advocates, has laid out a clear path for reform.
Their central proposal is a targeted energy bill discount, tailored to household need.
This would be automatically applied to qualifying households to ensure no one slips through the cracks.
Eligibility would be based not just on benefits, but on a combination of income, health conditions and rural location.
The aim is to replace the current blunt instruments with a more humane, precise safety net.
Dr Allan said the UK Government now has a responsibility to act decisively.
He argued that targeted support is no longer a matter of policy preference but one of urgent necessity.
As energy costs climb and more families face impossible choices, pressure will only mount on ministers in London to deliver.
In the meantime, the Scottish Government says it will continue to do all it can, within its powers, to protect the most vulnerable.
But for real change to happen, Dr Allan insists, Westminster must step up.
