Budget suspends the tariff on imported heating oil and pays £100 towards energy bills in England

Chancellor John Healey's Budget on Wednesday suspended the 4% tariff on kerosene heating oil brought into the country, from 26 November until the end of 2028. The Treasury said it would help households that heat their homes with oil, many of them rural or in Northern Ireland, but it has not said how much it will save, and that depends on importers passing it on.

Homes in council tax bands A to D in England also get £100 from January. It goes by council tax band, not by fuel, so homes on oil qualify too: it is paid straight into the bank for anyone paying council tax by direct debit, and councils will invite everyone else to apply.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland get a share of the money to offer similar help. The extended VAT cut is on electricity only, so heating oil still carries 5% VAT. In the Gulf, Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed on Tuesday that a missile hit Ras Tanura, a large Saudi refinery, though Saudi Arabia has not confirmed it.