Scottish Labour government will act to make life more affordable, says Sarwar

Anas Sarwar has said a Scottish Labour government would make life more affordable for families by helping them upgrade their homes and lower their bills.

Mr Sarwar said families are “dealing with high bills and serious anxiety as a result of the turmoil in the international energy markets”.

Scottish Labour has pledged to use the powers of the Scottish Parliament to:

– Boost the uptake of the Warm Home Discount to stop Scots missing out on the £150 payment;

– Create a national warm homes programme to help people upgrade their homes – meaning warmer homes and lower bills;

– Widen eligibility for the Warmer Homes Scotland grant to help older people upgrade their homes, making 3,000 more homes eligible;

– Top up the grants for rural homeowners to invest in energy saving measures, providing an additional £500 per eligible household;

– Protect support for those relying on heating oil.

Mr Sarwar said: “Families across Scotland are dealing with high bills and serious anxiety as a result of the turmoil in the international energy markets.

“People in rural communities who rely on heating oil have seen painful increases in their energy costs.

“Every level of government must work together to tackle this crisis and it is right that the UK has acted to support people – providing direct support for those using heating oil, investigating rip-off charges, maintaining the energy price gap and pledging to further support for those who need it most.

“John Swinney and the SNP have failed to make sure Scots are getting the support they need and their woeful failure to upgrade Scottish homes has left people with colder homes and higher bills at a time when they can ill afford it.

“A Scottish Labour government led by me will make life more affordable for Scottish families by helping them to upgrade their homes and get money off their bills.

“We will ease the pressure on people in rural communities and older people.

“In May, Scotland can vote for change by electing a Scottish Labour government that will get the basics right and deliver a better future for Scotland.”

But Shirley-Anne Somerville, the SNP candidate for Dunfermline and Scotland’s Social Justice Secretary, said Labour had “zero credibility on energy bills”.

“Just how short do Scottish Labour think our memories are?” she said.

“Anas Sarwar was the man who stood side by side with Keir Starmer when they promised to cut energy bills by £300 at the Westminster general election less than two years ago – energy bills are now likely to be £700 higher because of Labour’s broken promise.

“For Anas Sarwar to now tell people in energy rich Scotland the Labour Party will lower their heating bills is quite frankly galling, it’s no wonder people think he is a complete chancer.

“The Labour Party has zero credibility on energy bills and when it comes to promises, people in Scotland have heard it all before.

“Under John Swinney’s leadership we offer the best cost of living support package on these islands, but through a fresh start with independence we will use our energy wealth to lower energy bills and build a fairer and wealthier Scotland anew – only a vote for the SNP can secure that future.”