'ENERGY COMPANIES SHOULD DO MORE TO HELP THOSE IN FUEL POVERTY' - BURT
December 16, 2008 3:39 PM
Solihull's MP Lorely Burt, has joined Liberal Democrat colleagues in Parliament demanding Government action to force energy companies to help customers facing fuel poverty this winter.
Mrs Burt has signed a parliamentary motion calling for the action, to include home insulation, the swift installation of smart meters and a mandatory roll-out of standardised social tariffs guaranteeing cuts in energy prices.
Commenting from Westminster, Lorely said:
"Around five million households will experience fuel poverty this winter. Many customers are paying too much for their energy because of the bewildering array of social tariffs and because of the penalties for customers with prepayment meters.
"So much of the UK housing stock is poorly insulated, leading to even higher energy bills and reducing fuel efficiency. Despite all this, neither government nor the energy regulator, Ofgem, have been able to persuade energy companies to spend their windfall £9 billion profit from freely available trading credits under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.
"Government must now place a duty on Ofgem to require the energy companies to spend their windfall profits on a programme of energy efficiency measures and cuts in energy prices for customers facing fuel poverty. No-one should face a choice between food and fuel this winter."
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