The government has reportedly urged UK broadband suppliers to offer cheaper deals for lower income households.

This week a new service which lets internet companies identify whether customers currently have certain benefits and if they are eligible for more support will be launched by the Department for Work and Pensions, according to a report from Sky News.

The new service is already being supported by Virgin Media O2, said the report.

The move follows an announcement in June that the UK’s largest broadband and mobile operators would allow customers struggling to pay their bills to move to cheaper packages without charge under new government measures.

British telecoms companies - including BT Group; Openreach, Virgin Media O2, Vodafone, Three, TalkTalk and Sky - also agreed manageable payment plans with consumers and identify options to improve existing low cost offers, as well as promotion of existing deals.

"Some of the biggest network operators have already committed to take advantage of this new scheme, and we want to see other providers follow their lead so that everyone eligible for a social tariff can access one,” said founder of Just Eat David Buttress, who has been chosen by the government to work with the private sector to develop business-led initiatives to support Brits during the cost-of-living crisis. "This is just one of the ways that we're working with businesses to offer help through our Help for Households campaign, building on the comprehensive £37bn package of support already being provided by government."

As reported by Sky News, work and pension secretary Therese Coffey said: "it is more important than ever that people get the financial support available to them".

She added: "I'd like to thank those providers leading the way in moving customers over to discount rates, and I encourage others to follow suit to help millions of households to cut bills."

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