Social Tariff Bill: 3 Essential Facts to Avoid Confusion

What is the new social tariff bill?

A new social tariff bill has been tabled in Parliament. It would require energy, broadband and mobile providers to offer social tariffs to customers who are disabled, elderly or on a low income.

The Bill is called the Utilities (Social Tariff) Bill. The Commons Order Paper for 21 October 2026 lists Graham Leadbitter, the SNP MP for Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey, as the member in charge, and ISPreview reports that it is backed by several SNP colleagues.

Before anyone gets excited or worried, here is the catch. This is early days, and nothing about your own bills changes because of it.

Is the social tariff bill likely to become law?

It is too early to say. The social tariff bill is a Private Members Bill, which any MP can table, and ISPreview points out that only a minority of these ever become law.

They often do something else, though. They put an issue on the agenda and give MPs a reason to debate it. The Commons Order Paper lists the Bill for its second reading on Friday 27 November 2026.

The same Order Paper records the Bill as not yet printed, so its full text was still unavailable when we checked on 22 October 2026. That means we do not yet know who would qualify, how prices would be set or which providers would be covered in practice.

We will keep an eye on it. For now, it is fair to treat the social tariff bill as a signal of the debate rather than a change in the rules.

What are social tariffs, and how many people use them?

Social tariffs are cheaper plans aimed at people who receive certain benefits, such as Universal Credit. Today they are offered on a voluntary basis, mostly in broadband, with a smaller number in mobile.

The social tariff bill would turn the voluntary approach into a requirement and extend it to energy. That is the big difference from what exists now.

Ofcom has encouraged providers to offer these plans, and ISPreview says the regulator has been reasonably successful at that. Eligibility rules and prices vary by provider, so the plan on offer to you depends on who you are with.

Fewer people use them than you might expect. Ofcom’s Pricing and consumer engagement report, published on 26 February 2026, says that in June 2025 there were 532,000 customers using a fixed or mobile broadband social tariff, an annual increase of 26,000, or 5%.

Ofcom describes take up as low as a proportion of eligible households, at less than 9%. ISPreview puts the same figure at 8.6%. The report also says 70% of eligible households were unaware of social tariffs in October 2025.

On price, Ofcom’s report puts broadband social tariffs at £12.50 to £24 a month and mobile ones at £10 to £12. Those are the ranges available by December 2025, so check what your own provider offers rather than assuming the floor.

Three further figures come from ISPreview’s reading of the same report rather than from wording we could find in its published text, so treat them as reported rather than confirmed. An eligible household could save around £200 a year on average. Among eligible households who knew about social tariffs, the most common places they first heard about them were social media (17%), friends and family (17%) and TV (15%). And only 3% of social tariff tak up is mobile, which Ofcom is said to put down to how many cheap standard SIM only and pay as you go deals already exist.

Ofcom continues to call on providers to promote their tariffs.

What do critics say about making social tariffs mandatory?

There are arguments on both sides. ISPreview notes that the bigger obstacle may be awareness and promotion rather than how many providers offer a social tariff, a point the regulator and the National Audit Office have both raised.

It also says many smaller providers could struggle to introduce a social tariff given the thin margins in home broadband. Some argue that plenty of alternative network packages are already cheap, so a requirement may not be needed.

The numbers above are why some want a firmer approach, since take up is still low under the voluntary one. The detail of the social tariff bill will matter a great deal once it is published.

What can you do now?

If you think you might qualify for a social tariff, ask your provider directly. You do not need to wait for the social tariff bill to move. Our guides on broadband social tariffs and the social tariff eligibility check explain how they work. We have also covered the 5G social tariff from Vodafone.

Whether or not you qualify, it is worth checking what you pay. Plenty of households are on a plan they chose years ago, and doing nothing has a price. Your potential saving depends on your current deal and what is available where you live, so treat any figure as an estimate.

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Frequently asked questions about the social tariff bill

Sources

• House of Commons Order Paper, 21 October 2026. The member in charge, the second reading date of Friday 27 November 2026, and the record that the Bill is not yet printed.
• ISPreview, 21 October 2026. What the Bill would require, its SNP backing, the odds on Private Members Bills, and the arguments for and against a mandatory approach.
• Ofcom, Pricing and consumer engagement report, 26 February 2026. The 532,000 take up figure for June 2025, the annual increase of 26,000, take up at less than 9% of eligible households, 70% unaware in October 2025, and the £12.50 to £24 and £10 to £12 price ranges.
• ISPreview on Ofcom’s Pricing Trends report, 26 February 2026. The 8.6% take up figure, the £200 average saving, the awareness channels and the 3% mobile share, which we could not locate in the report’s published text.

Checked 22 October 2026.