Scottish Government to introduce winter fuel payments for all pensioners

All pensioners in Scotland will be given help with winter fuel bills next year, the Scottish Government has confirmed.

Plans to provide the seasonal support emerged in the media before they were announced to the Scottish Parliament, prompting an apology from social justice secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville.

But the cabinet secretary said the payments, which will be available from late 2025, would help to "protect" older people.

She said: "Ahead of next winter I will bring forward regulations to introduce universal Pension Age Winter Heating Payments (PAWHP) in winter 2025-26 for Scottish pensioners.

"This universal benefit – providing much-needed support not available anywhere else in the UK – will deliver support for all pensioner households as we had always intended to do before the UK Government decision to means-test Winter Fuel Payments cut the funding available to support our new benefit in Scotland this winter by £147m.

"We will not abandon older people this winter or any winter. We will do our best to make sure no-one has to make a decision between heating and eating, and we will continue to protect pensioners."

Under the measure, those receiving Pension Credit will be eligible for £200 or £300. Others will receive £100.

The UK Government announced it would end universal entitlement to the Winter Fuel Payment in the summer, blaming a multi-billion pound "black hole" Labour ministers said their Conservative predecessors had left behind.

The Scottish Government said it had to follow suit due to a £150m shortfall caused by the change.

Somerville also announced £20m in welfare funding for councils, with the same sum confirmed for the Warmer Homes Scotland Scheme and an additional £1m to go towards homelessness prevention work.

The announcement comes after Scottish Labour revealed plans to force a vote on fuel payments for pensioners in the Scottish Parliament. Anas Sarwar's party said it would restore cash for all if it wins the 2026 Holyrood election and use a "tapering" mechanism to limit support for the best-off.

Labour's Paul O'Kane said decisions taken by the UK Government had delivered £41m for Scotland. He said: "I have always said there was more that could be done this winter."

Somerville said Labour "should come here with a bit of humility and a bit of an apology for Scotland's pensioners, for putting us in the position in the first place".

Conservative MSP Liz Smith accused Somerville and colleagues of "hoodwinking" the public by "pretending they are bringing back the full Winter Fuel Payment".

She said: "There is more than a hint of irony in this announcement, because the SNP is constantly moaning that their fiscal hands are tied by the bad deeds of Westminster. But as the Scottish Fiscal Commission rightly said a few months ago, some of the real pressure on budgets comes from the Scottish Government's own decisions. So it is simply not true for ministers to argue that they had absolutely no choice but to leave pensioners out in the cold."

The announcement comes one week ahead of the Scottish budget.

Debbie Horne of the charity Independent Age welcomed the news, saying: "Since the decision to restrict the Winter Fuel Payment to only older people on Pension Credit, we’ve seen a surge in the number of older people getting in touch with Independent Age who are worried about heating their homes, and making ends meet, through the winter. Many have told us they are heating only one room, staying in bed all day with a blanket, and cutting back on food to avoid the energy costs associated with cooking.  

"With energy prices set to rise again in January, and a staggering 330,000 older households living in fuel poverty in Scotland, it is clear that changing the eligibility of the payment in this way was the wrong decision. It is positive that this has been recognised in Scotland, with the Scottish Government making a payment available to all older people next year, and we hope the UK Government will also reconsider their decision."

She went on: "In a compassionate and socially just society, no one should face fuel poverty. We are pleased the Scottish Government has listened to older people, and taken this action today. However, we remain concerned about older people who face this winter without this much needed financial support. Going forward, the Scottish Government should continue to monitor the situation and be open to taking further action in future."