On 10 September 2026 Department for Communities official Cherrie Arnold told the Assembly Communities Committee that 51,000 applications to the Home Heating Oil Support Scheme had been made in its first 24 hours, as reported by the Irish News.
Resolves on communities-ni.gov.uk, nidirect or the Northern Ireland Assembly record. YES if, on or before 25 September 2026, the Department for Communities or the Minister states a number of applications received or vouchers issued under the scheme. An estimate of eligible households does not count; the figure must describe applications or awards. If that source has not published in time, BBC News NI and the Belfast Telegraph settle it.
We looked for every time since 2022 that a government named in advance the day a direct support payment would reach households in Northern Ireland, where that day has now passed. Energy schemes alone gave three cases, so we added the Cost of Living Payments made to Northern Ireland homes on days named in advance. That makes seven. For each we asked whether the money arrived on the day named. All seven dates were kept. How long each scheme took to reach its date is noted but not counted, because the announcements ran on different clocks.