4. I welcome the minister to her new role.

To ask the Scottish Government what its latest engagement has been with the United Kingdom Government regarding financial pressures that households in Scotland are facing as a result of energy costs. (S6O-02167)

The disproportionate impact of high energy prices on fuel-poor households across Scotland is something that I am raising as a matter of urgency with the United Kingdom Government. Although I am disappointed that earlier requests from Scottish ministers to meet the secretary of state were not answered, I aim to meet the Minister for Energy Consumers and Affordability soon to seek action from them on issues including support for those who have been most affected by the ending of the energy bills support scheme, and the introduction of a much-needed social tariff for energy consumers.

I thank the minister for that answer. According to the Office for Budget Responsibility, the UK is expected to suffer the biggest fall in living standards since records began in 1950, with real household disposable income being expected to fall by 5.7 per cent over 2022-23 and 2023-24. Last week, I held an energy summit in Perth, at which experts from Citizens Advice Scotland, Home Energy Scotland, Scarf and Perth and Kinross Council shared information on and solutions for saving money on fuel bills and cost of living pressures.

What else can the Scottish Government do to press the UK Government to relieve the pressures that its economic mismanagement has introduced for far too many of my constituents?

I thank Jim Fairlie for his supplementary question, and I commend him for the work that he is doing to help his constituents.

As I said, we have called repeatedly for action from the UK Government—including ahead of the spring budget review, when a real difference could have been made—but it has failed to deliver. In addition to the meeting that I hope to have with the UK Minister for Energy Consumers and Affordability, I will be progressing work that was delivered as a result of the Scottish Government’s energy summit last year. I intend to give us and our partners in Scotland a stronger combined voice, which we will continue to use to challenge the UK Government on the need for more action to support those who are most in need.

I recommend that Mr Fairlie and all MSPs signpost any constituents who are having real difficulty paying their bills to Advice Direct Scotland, which is administering the Scottish Government’s home heating support and whose offices I visited yesterday.

We have tripled our fuel insecurity fund, but as Mr Fairlie alludes to, the core cost that is affecting families needs to be tackled by the UK Government, which has the powers to make a real difference in that area.

Has the Scottish Government discussed the potential for a UK windfall tax—given the unprecedented energy profits that are being made—and the Scottish Government’s plans for the energy company that it was proposing to establish? Will that be on the agenda with the UK minister, because we need to accelerate plans to invest in energy-efficient homes in Scotland in order to eradicate fuel poverty, to lower bills, to create jobs and to deliver on net zero. Would not that be a practical way to get going on that?

A lot practical things could be done by the United Kingdom Government a lot sooner than some of the things that Sarah Boyack mentioned. Given that we in the Scottish Government really have powers only with regard to helping people to make their homes more energy efficient, that is where we are directing a lot of our powers and funding.

As I mentioned, we have built on the commitment to double the fuel insecurity fund. Our winter heating payment replaces the Department for Work and Pensions’ cold weather payment with a reliable annual £550 payment that is helping around 400,000 low-income individuals with their heating expenses.

Many of the powers that are required for a lot of the things that Sarah Boyack mentioned in relation to energy companies sit, at the moment, with the UK Government. Last week, I had a meeting with Andrew Bowie, who is the UK Minister for Nuclear and Networks at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, about some very small constitutional issues that might be able to help us to do a lot more in this area, but which need to be devolved to this Parliament.

The Deputy Presiding Officer:

Briefly, Willie Rennie.

In Scotland, 600,000 homes are in extreme fuel poverty—but last year only just more than 5,000 households were helped by the Government with the insulation programme. This year’s warmer homes scheme will not even open again until October. Why is the Scottish National Party-Green Government so slow on insulating people’s homes?

Our national fuel poverty scheme, warmer homes Scotland, is designed to help those who are living in or are at risk of fuel poverty. Unfortunately, in the past year or so, many people who were not in fuel poverty have been plunged into it—not because of the actions of the Scottish Government but because of increasing fuel costs and the increasing cost of people’s energy bills. We are ploughing in money to mitigate somewhat the crisis, but if we had some real action on bringing down the cost of people’s fuel in the first place, we would not be in this situation.