§ 9. Dr. Edmund Marshallasked the Secretary of State for Energy whether he will issue a general direction to electricity supply boards that places of worship should be classified as domestic premises for the purposes of electricity tariff.
§ Mr. Norman LamontNo, Sir. Formulation of electricity tariffs is a statutory responsibility of the area electricity boards. If the hon. Member has a particular case in mind this would best be pursued direct with the board concerned.
§ Dr. MarshallIs the hon. Gentleman aware that I have done that, without any satisfaction? The Yorkshire electricity board treats places of worship as commercial and miscellaneous premises, with the result that they are allocated a large primary block of units for charging purposes, so large for some spacious churches that their consumption never exceeds that primary block, for which they have to pay through the nose. Will the Minister examine the matter again and iron out this injustice?
§ Mr. LamontI shall look at the matter again. It is also open to the hon. Gentleman to take it up with the consultative council. I do not think that he has done that.
§ Dr. MarshallI have—nationally.
§ Mr. LamontIt is by no means clear that the change that the hon. Gentleman wants will definitely be of advantage. He should take into account the fact that church halls are often most used at a time of peak demand, when the charges reflect the costs of supplying electricity at that time.
§ Mr. Kenneth LewisWill my hon. Friend take it from me that if he goes to church regularly—perhaps that is what Ministers need to do, because we are reaching the stage at which at least we need some praying, if nothing else—he will find that churches cannot afford to meet fuel prices, because they are going so high, and half the churches are freezing cold on a Sunday?
§ Mr. LamontI am glad to tell my hon. Friend that I went to church yesterday, when I had the pleasure of praying for Her Majesty's Ministers. It was extremely cold.