Raising the Warm Home Discount from £150 to £250 would cost £600m, according to a Budget preview by Philip Shaw published in Business News on 23 October. That is less than the more than £1bn energy package the Guardian has reported the Chancellor, John Healey, is considering.
Earlier accounts of the Guardian's reporting put the discount at £250 or £300. Shaw's preview sets out what he expects. It is not a statement of government plans.
Shaw expects a broadly neutral Budget with targeted energy support rather than a universal price cap. He lists as possible an extension to VAT relief on electricity, the fuel duty freeze and the temporary 5p duty cut.
Among other options for raising money, he lists National Insurance on earnings above retirement age, higher gambling duties and making online marketplaces collect VAT. He says changes to capital gains tax "remain possible" through smaller rate rises or ending forgiveness at death. The Times and Bloomberg have reported that Healey has ruled out any rise in capital gains tax.
The Treasury has not confirmed any of these measures, and the £600m figure has not been independently checked.