Households told they could get up to £10,000 off their bills over a decade if they live near to new pylons or electricity substations

Britons who live closest to new pylons and electricity substations will receive up to £10,000 off their bills over a decade, Jeremy Hunt is set to announce.

The Chancellor is expected to unveil the move in his Autumn Statement as part of efforts to tackle planning objections and speed up the approval of new energy infrastructure.

The Government aims to halve the amount of time it takes to deliver new electricity networks from 14 to seven years.

This will involve drastically reducing the wait for the approval and building of new pylons, overhead cables and other transmission infrastructure.

A shake-up of the planning system is expected to include a ‘premium service’ across England to guarantee faster pre-application services for major projects.

Britons who live closest to new pylons and electricity substations will receive up to £10,000 off their bills over a decade, Jeremy Hunt is set to announce

The Chancellor is expected to unveil the move in his Autumn Statement as part of efforts to tackle planning objections and speed up the approval of new energy infrastructure

The Chancellor’s Autumn Statement on Wednesday is also expected to include confirmation that nationally significant low carbon energy infrastructure will be designated as a critical national priority.

This will see the planning system prioritise the rollout of electric vehicle chargepoints, including help for petrol station forecourts to convert into charging hubs. 

The reforms are part of Mr Hunt and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s bid to boost economic growth, while they are also deemed as essential to helping with Britain’s push for Net Zero.

Officials claimed speeding up the construction of new electricity connections could bring forward £90billion of global investment over the next decade.

A Treasury source said: ‘Expanding the grid will unlock global investment for Britain and bring improvements for people across the country, with energy security that will keep energy costs down.

‘And by speeding up the planning system – including the rollout of electric vehicle chargepoints – we will be tackling one of the most common issues raised by businesses who are keen to invest in the UK.

‘This Autumn Statement will show that it’s the UK Government who are taking the long-term decisions to deliver the changes we need.’

The Treasury declined to say who would be paying for the discount on bills. 

Matt Copeland, head of policy at the National Energy Action campaign to eradicate fuel poverty, said: ‘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.

‘Millions of households will be cold at home this winter if no further support is announced in the Autumn Statement this week.’

Labour’s shadow chief secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones said: ‘After 13 years of Tory economic failure, this Conservative Government is out of ideas and now looking to Labour for the solutions.’

Liberal Democrat Treasury spokeswoman Sarah Olney said: ‘This scheme would create a postcode lottery system leaving millions of families still facing higher energy bills while others benefit.’

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