The number of recipients of state subsidies this year dropped from 6.7 mn to about 6.6 mn people, an official in Ukraine's Social Policy Ministry Tetiana Holubenko told Governmental Courier on Tuesday, 14 November.
"When calculating the size of subsidies for the new heating season, we take into account the incomes of citizens in Q1 and Q2 of 2017 At that time, as you remember, the government doubled the size of minimum wage, which influenced the number of recipients heating subsidies. Their number decreased," Holubenko said.
The ministry's press service said that 5.8 mn Ukrainians are entitled to housing subsidies, and 0.8 mn people receive solid fuel subsidies.
The government will compensate the October utilities bills to families that have not applied for subsidies before the start of the heating season. Utility costs will also be reimbursed for November in the case subsidy applications are submitted in December – two months after the beginning of the heating season.
The number of recipients of subsidies, according to the ministry, is projected to decrease in the following year in connection with the October increase in pensions.
The average size of the housing subsidy in Ukraine in the 2016/2017 heating season was at 2 thousand hryvnya, a substantial increase against 1.2 - 1,4 thousand hryvnya last year.