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<p>The Government continues to work closely with Ofcom on the issue of affordability
of telecoms services, including social tariffs.</p><p> </p><p>In December 2023, Ofcom’s
Pricing Trends report showed that 380,000 UK households now take up a social tariff,
an almost 160% increase from September 2022.</p><p> </p><p>Social tariffs are low-cost,
commercial products, but it is important to recognise that they may not represent
the best value for money in every circumstance and should be considered alongside
other commercial offers and bundled services.</p><p> </p><p>The Government and Ofcom
continue to press operators to do more to raise awareness of social tariffs so that
eligible households make use of them. Ofcom’s report also showed that just 45% of
eligible households were aware of low-cost broadband offers. In July 2023, Ofcom’s
Chief Executive wrote to the sector to set out the regulator’s expectation that they
should do more to promote awareness, such as by highlighting tariffs on bills and
end-of-contract notifications.</p>
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