Milton Keynes Council prepares to provide emergency warm spaces

Libraries could be used to provide warm spaces for people as part of the council's emergency plan

A council said it was preparing an emergency plan to provide warm spaces for people during winter.

Milton Keynes Council said it was concerned that "rocketing energy bills will massively impact people's health".

The authority, which is run by a Labour and Liberal Democrat coalition, said it was working to "ensure people have somewhere warm to go over winter if they cannot afford to heat their home".

Public buildings such as libraries could be used as part of the plan.

The council also said it would "work with other partners to make their buildings available too".

The council said its "first step" would be to ensure "those most in need have somewhere warm to go"

The energy cap increase in October will see bills rise to an average of £3,500. The government is to give all UK households a one-off £400 discount on their fuel bills.

Liberal Democrat councillor Jane Carr, cabinet member for the cost of living crisis, said the council was "facing massive inflation" on its own costs.

"However, while we have no choice but to keep the lights on, many people are facing an impossible choice and without having an emergency energy plan in place, people will die or suffer illnesses because they cannot get warm," she said.

"So, we will be looking at what we can do to ensure the buildings we are heating anyway can be used to provide warm spaces for people who need it.

"We will also be reaching out to partners to see if we can build a network of these warm spaces."

The council said it would unveil some of its measures from September.