Renfrewshire North and West MSP Natalie Don has welcomed a £30million fund intended to stem fuel insecurity during the cost-of-living crisis.

The fund will provide £9million for home heating support fund grants to offer immediate relief for families struggling with rising prices, with the cash to be administered by Advice Direct Scotland.

A further £8.5million will be given to the Fuel Bank Foundation, which helps about 85,000 households struggling with fuel insecurity, while £7.25million will be given to the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations, with a target of providing more than 55,000 households with support, advice and energy saving items.

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The Wise Group will also be provided with £5million to offer one-to-one mentoring to households.

Ms Don said she was "delighted" with the plans, which she believes will help tackle the problem of fuel insecurity affecting households across Renfrewshire.

She added: "The First Minister is holding an anti-poverty summit which will include those with direct experience of poverty along with experts from the public, private and third sectors. Tackling fuel poverty is one of the key issues to be addressed.

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"It is a disgrace that energy-rich Scotland, with abundant supplies of oil, gas and renewable power still has households in fuel poverty."

Conor Forbes, the director of business development and policy at Advice Direct Scotland, said the body was "delighted" to be working with the Scottish Government on the funding, stressing the importance of those struggling with fuel costs to reach out for support.

Sean Duffy, chief executive officer of Wise Group, said it was "great to see" the government taking action on poverty, pledging to take a "personalised approach to support each household in a way that supports sustainable change".