ALMOST a million Scots could be forking out up to £400 extra every year if ministers scrap the single-person discount for water bills and council tax, Labour warned last night.

Labour MSP Jackie Baillie led a debate at Holyrood as charities warned rising water bills could cause “financial hardship for many of Scotland’s least-well-off older people.”

The Scottish government is currently consulting over whether to remove the 25 per cent reduction on water charges. Last month, Ms Baillie challenged Nicola Sturgeon to rule out scrapping the discount as well as the 25 per cent council tax reduction. but the First Minister refused to do so.