Steve Yemm MP: Budget will bring down bills for Mansfield families and businesses

Mansfield MP Steve Yemm believes the recent Budget will help ‘put money back into the pockets’ of residents around the town.

Around 47,100 households in Mansfield will receive a £100 payment towards their energy bills this winter under measures announced in the Budget, alongside the scrapping of gas standing charges and an extension to the 5p cut in fuel duty, Mansfield MP Steve Yemm has said.

The payment is part of the Government's new £2.6 billion Energy Bills Breathing Space scheme and will be paid directly into the bank accounts of homes in council tax bands A to D, which cover most properties in Mansfield.

Mr Yemm said: "Families in Mansfield have faced high bills for too long, driven in part by wars Britain did not start. This Budget puts money back in their pockets now. £100 towards energy bills, cheaper electricity and frozen fuel duty will make a real difference to households across our town."

The Government has also confirmed that standing charges on household gas bills will be removed for around 23 million homes. The fixed daily charge is added to every gas bill regardless of how much gas is used and costs a typical household £108 a year. Ofgem has been asked to deliver the change in 2027 or as soon as possible after.

Under the changes, standing charge costs will be moved into the unit rate. with government analysis showing this could save around 60 per cent of households an average of £45 a year.

Mr Yemm added: "The standing charge has meant people paying a fixed fee whether they used any gas or not. That has never been fair, and it hits hardest on the households already cutting back. Scrapping it means people will pay for the energy they use, and nothing more."

The 0% VAT rate on electricity, which came into effect at the start of this month and lowered the October Energy Price Cap by £45 a year, has been extended until July 2027.

Fuel duty will also remain frozen until July 2027, and more generous mileage rates will become permanent for people who use their own vehicles for work.

From April, the National Living Wage will rise to £13.21 an hour, worth £910 a year to a full-time worker.

Mr Yemm said: "Business rates are one of the biggest fixed costs small firms face. Taking thousands more of them out of business rates will give Mansfield's shops, pubs and cafés room to invest and take on staff."