The energy price guarantee Northern Ireland scheme is already in force and paying support to households, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Lord Callanan, told the House of Lords Grand Committee on 16 November 2022. He was moving the Energy Prices (Domestic Supply) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022, which were laid before the House on 31 October 2022 and define the terms "Northern Ireland domestic electricity supply" and "Northern Ireland domestic gas supply" for the purposes of the scheme1.
The scheme reduces the unit cost of electricity and gas for domestic consumers in Northern Ireland by the same mechanism used in Great Britain: suppliers cut bills by a set number of pence per kilowatt hour and His Majesty's Government compensates them. Electricity costs are being reduced by 20 pence per kilowatt hour and gas by almost 5 pence per kilowatt hour1. Lord Callanan said a typical household in Northern Ireland has seen its energy costs increase threefold since the same time last year1.
Northern Ireland has a separate energy market, with the Utility Regulator for Northern Ireland rather than Ofgem, no price cap and an entirely different set of suppliers, so it could not fall under the Great Britain scheme1. The regulations mean some non-domestic premises, including some places of worship with metering and tariff arrangements similar to domestic premises, will receive support; Lord Callanan said possibly fewer than 100 non-domestic premises are in scope, and that there was no timely way for suppliers to separate them from domestic premises1.
"the scheme is already in force and delivering support to households across Northern Ireland"
Other support sits alongside the scheme. The alternative fuel payment will provide £100 to households that do not use mains gas for heating, designed by reference to increases in the price of heating oil and other alternative fuels between September 2021 and September 20221. Households will also receive £400 through the energy bills support scheme; Lord Callanan said the £400 will not be backdated because it is paid as a flat sum, while the energy price guarantee is backdated through an additional pence-per-kilowatt payment on top of the base rate from November to March1.
| Support | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Energy price guarantee NI | 20p per kWh off electricity; almost 5p per kWh off gas | Backdated via an additional pence-per-kilowatt payment from November to March1 |
| Energy bills support scheme | £400 | Flat sum, not backdated1 |
| Alternative fuel payment | £100 | For households not using mains gas for heating1 |
Two-thirds of households in Northern Ireland use heating oil, Lord Browne of Belmont said, and the oil market there is not regulated1. Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown called the £100 payment for heating oil "totally useless and verging on an insult" to those in need, and asked for confirmation of when the £400 would be paid, saying there was talk it might not arrive until January1. The scheme's treatment of oil users, and the timing of the £400, were not resolved in the debate as recorded1.
Why it matters for households
For a household in Northern Ireland, the discount arrives through the unit rate on the bill rather than as a separate payment, so the benefit scales with how much electricity and gas is used, and the backdated element runs from November to March1. Because Northern Ireland sits outside the Great Britain price cap and has its own regulator and suppliers, support here depends on separate legislation rather than the Ofgem mechanism, and the energy price guarantee is a temporary scheme rather than a permanent change to how bills are set1. The £400 is a flat sum, so it does not vary with consumption, and the £100 alternative fuel payment is the only element aimed at the two-thirds of households using heating oil, whose prices are not regulated1. For a home's energy independence, the practical effect is a lower unit price for a fixed period, with no change to the underlying market structure or to the fuels most households depend on1.
What happens next
Lord Callanan said the Government will consider how best to offer further support to the customers most at risk from energy price increases beyond April 20231. He also said the data collected under the scheme will be held by the Government for 10 years and can be shared with other departments, law enforcement agencies, regulatory bodies and others1. No date for the £400 payment was confirmed in the debate as recorded1.
Sources1 cited
- Energy Prices (Domestic Supply) (Northern Ireland) Reg - Hansard - UK Parliament(NorthernIreland)Regulations2022), hansard.parliament.uk