Poorest families yet to receive Rishi Sunak’s promised £150 help with soaring energy bills

Some of the poorest families in the country have yet to receive the £150 council tax rebate promised by chancellor Rishi Sunak to ease soaring energy bills, a leading charity has warned.

National Energy Action said many of the hardest-pressed people in England and Wales who do not pay their council tax via direct debit were still waiting for their payment.

Local authorities were expected to distribute the £150 rebate when the energy price cap was raised in April, but say they are struggling to pay the one-off sum to everyone.

“There are serious concerns that those with the greatest need will be least able to access the money,” said chief executive Adam Scorer.

Analysis by the BBC shows a clear delay in the payments for those who do not who pay their council tax by direct debit, compared to those who make use of pre-authorised bank payments.

More than 280 English and Welsh local authorities surveyed by the broadcaster said the payments should have already been made to people using direct debit.

But the “vast majority of councils” said residents who do not pay by direct debit would have to be contacted in the weeks ahead and urged to make an application.

The Liberal Democrats had previously warned that 1.3 million eligible families were at risk of missing out on rebate because of the government’s “half-baked plans”.

Mr Sunak announced earlier this year the one-off £150 council tax rebate alongside a £200 loan for energy bills – which requiring repayments over the following five years.

The rebate warning comes as cabinet minister Brandon Lewis said he was “surprised” by the governor of the Bank of England Andrew Bailey issuing an “apocalyptic” warning about rising food prices.

In a sign of the tension between Boris Johnson’s government and the Bank, Mr Lewis criticised the governor choice of words to describe the dramatic rising cost of living.

The latest YouGov poll shows 55 per cent of Britons reporting that their health has worsened in recent months amid soaring bills. Around eight in 10 people who said their health had suffered blamed increased heating costs.

Meanwhile, Conservative MPs are facing fresh pressure to support a one-off windfall tax on oil and gas producers in a bid to cut energy bills.

Labour on Tuesday will seek to force a Commons vote on its amendment which expresses regret at the omission of the policy from the Queen’s Speech.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak recently told the BBC he is not “naturally attracted” to a windfall tax, but he would be “pragmatic about it” in light of the profits due to elevated prices.

Michael Gove’s Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said ministers expected councils to make the £150 rebate payments without further delay.

“Direct debit is the quickest and easiest way to pay council tax, and the best way for most people to get the rebate. But councils have a range of options for people who don’t pay by direct debit,” said a spokesperson.

The Local Government Association (LGA) said giving out the £150 to everyone had been “a significant task and not without its challenges”.

A spokesperson for the LGA said many councils were now “focusing on contacting those eligible who do not pay their council tax by direct debit”.