§ 2. Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he has any plans to review the code of practice for domestic customers issued by the electrity and gas industries.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonNo, Sir. It is for the Gas and Electricity Consumer Councils to keep the operation of the code of practice under review and, if appropriate, to recommend any changes.
§ Mr. HughesThe Minister will be aware that I am returning to a matter that I raised last month. He accepted the figures that I gave that gas disconnections increased by 40 per cent. last year, whereas electricity disconnections decreased slightly. We have had one cold snap— I am not talking politically — and there may be a severe winter. Will he be less complacent and say that the number of disconnections this winter will be reduced, to prevent thousands dying from or being affected by hypothermia?
§ Mr. MorrisonI am glad that the hon. Gentleman is not referring to his particular political cold snap. I know that he is concerned about this matter, and I think that at the last Energy Question Time I explained that this is a matter for the Gas Consumer Council. I assure the hon. Gentleman that, under the present code, a commitment 4 not to cut off the supply between October and March to pensioner households is something that is abided by, and I am sure he will agree with that.
§ Mr. SternDoes my hon. Friend agree that as both gas and electricity boards have gained experience of working with the current codes of practice it has been possible for them to look more advantageously at the consumer, as long as the consumer is prepared to contact the gas or electricity boards as early as possible? Indeed, the experience of many of us in our constituency work has been that, provided such negotiations start early enough, many of the problems that the codes of practice were brought into being to prevent are avoidable.
§ Mr. MorrisonI entirely agree with my hon. Friend. The arrangements in place for both gas and electricity are very welcome to many of his constituents as well as to the constituents of all hon. Members. However, as the hon. Member for Southwark and Bermondsey (Mr. Hughes) pointed out, there has been an increase, and the Gas Consumer Council is looking carefully into this at the moment.
§ Mr. John GarrettIs the Minister aware that gas disconnections increased by 25 per cent. in 1986 and by 35 per cent. in the first nine months of 1987? Has not privatisation been a massive and major cause of fuel poverty? What level of disconnections will there be after next April, when the 2.5 million households receiving help for heating through social security will cease to receive it? Is it not a case of putting profit before people?
§ Mr. MorrisonI do not think that the hon. Gentleman can have noticed what has happened to the price of gas since privatisation. In relative terms the price has gone down, and presumably that will lead to a better situation.