BRITS living near new pylons and electricity substations will bag as much as £10,000 off their energy bills, Jeremy Hunt has announced.
The Chancellor dangled the cash incentive for communities threatening to wreck crucial proposals with planning objections.
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It is part of a “premium” plan to boost domestic supply by halving the time to deliver new networks from 14 to seven years.
He said: “So after talking to businesses such as National Grid, Octopus Energy and SSE, we today publish our full response to the Winser review and Connections Action Plan.
“These measures will cut grid access delays by 90 per cent and offer up to £10,000 off electricity bills over 10 years for those living closest to new transmission infrastructure.”
The announcement came in this afternoon’s Autumn Statement where Mr Hunt finally unleashed much-wanted tax cuts.
Millions of workers are set to benefit from sweeping cuts to national insurance, while business taxes will also be slashed to boost growth.
And those on the lowest pay will see a £1,800 hike through the minimum wage while benefits will rise by more than 6 per cent.
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Bids to build energy infrastructure currently get bogged down for years as developers face resident revolt.
So to sweeten the deal locals will get whopping discounts on their bills up to £10,000, although it is unclear with private firms or taxpayers will foot this.
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This week Rishi Sunak made shoring up Britain’s energy supply one of his five economic priorities.
Britain was left exposed to soaring prices following Putin’s invasion of Ukraine that saw Western nations shun Russian oil and gas.
Matt Copeland, head of policy at the National Energy Action campaign to eradicate fuel poverty, said last week: “It’s only right that those affected by pylons are compensated.
“But this is not a substitute for the UK Government supporting vulnerable people with their sky-high energy bills.”
