Northern Ireland farmers to get £600 energy support payment

A number of households were not eligible for the Energy Bills Support Payment, but will now receive the payment through an alternative scheme.

Farming households in Northern Ireland that were ineligible for the Energy Bills Support Scheme payment are to receive £600 of support through an alternative scheme.

The Ulster Farmers' Union (UFU) says support would be made available through the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding Northern Ireland.

The initiative was announced by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (formerly BEIS).

It will provide £600 support payment to households in Northern Ireland without a relationship with a domestic electricity supplier.

UFU Deputy President William Irvine said: “The union has been inundated with phone calls from members over the past few months, worrying that their household would not receive support automatically from their electricity supplier under the Energy Bills Support Scheme. 

"The UFU has been working with government to ensure that all farm dwelling houses could be catered for regardless of what electricity tariff they’re on. 

"It’s an extremely positive outcome that farming households will now get the energy support they need after lobbying efforts.

"We encourage those members who missed out on support through the initial Energy Bills Support Scheme, to apply for the Alternative Funding scheme when it opens later this month.”

Households that are eligible for the scheme will need to submit a short online form via the government’s GOV.UK pages, however the opening date of the application portal has not yet been confirmed.

A pilot phase of the scheme is now open in the following postcode areas to test the digital systems of the application process: BT74; BT75; BT77; BT78; BT92; BT93; BT94.

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