Cold snap triggers freezing weather payment

People on low incomes will receive a Cold Weather Payment from the government as freezing temperatures sweep parts of the UK.

Benefit claimants across hundreds of postcodes in England and Wales will receive £25 over the next two weeks.

The Cold Weather Payment is triggered if average temperatures hit freezing or below for seven days in a row.

Payments will be made to homes across north-east England, Cumbria, west Wales and as far south as Oxfordshire.

In December, many homes in England, Wales and Northern Ireland received money when there was a run of extremely cold weather.

The recent cold snap sent temperatures plunging as low as -9.7C in Benson, Oxfordshire, while some parts of Scotland have been relatively mild at 10.1C.

Separately, up to one million households in England. Scotland and Wales will be paid to use less electricity on Monday to avoid blackouts.

National Grid will run its so-called Demand Flexibility Service, which gives people a discount on their bills if they delay energy intensive tasks such as using the washing machine or the oven at peak times.