Fuel Poverty (Hansard, 19 December 2001)

§ Mr. Amess
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has for the provision of emergency heating for pensioners on the waiting list for heating insulation under fuel poverty schemes. [12519]

§ Mr. Meacher
The majority of new heating installations under the Home Energy Efficiency Scheme are now being completed within 12 weeks of the date of home survey.
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Where there is a risk of severe delay, and the householder has no form of alternative heating, the HEES scheme managers will provide portable heating appliances.
As fuel poverty is a devolved matter, it is the responsibility of the respective Parliament and Assemblies to comment on the situation in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

§ Mr. Andrew Turner
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made as to the number of people who would be in fuel poverty in(a) England and (b) the Isle of Wight if there were a 5 per cent, rise in fuel prices. [23678]

§ Mr. Wilson
I have been asked to reply.
The UK Fuel Poverty Strategy, which was published in November 2001, states that for the purposes of estimating the effects of price changes on future numbers in fuel poverty, a reasonable range of price movements by 2010 to consider would appear to be: for domestic gas prices—an increase of 15 per cent, to a fall of 10 per cent, in real terms; and for domestic electricity prices—an increase of 5 per cent, to a fall of 2 per cent, in real terms
If electricity prices were to rise by 5 per cent, and gas prices by 15 per cent, then the number in fuel poverty in England could increase by around 0.8 million. If electricity prices fell by 2 per cent, and gas prices fell by 10 per cent, then the numbers in fuel poverty could fall by around 0.3 million. Future gas and electricity prices are uncertain and will be affected by a number of factors. It is difficult to estimate the precise impacts of price changes on the numbers in fuel poverty. The figures presented give a broad indication of the changes in fuel poverty which might be expected from the stated changes in energy prices.
It is broadly estimated that a 5 per cent, increase in fuel prices may increase the number of households in fuel poverty in England by around 0.4 million. Data are not available to produce estimates of fuel poverty on the Isle of Wight and it is therefore not possible to estimate the impact of changes in fuel prices on fuel poverty on the Isle of Wight.
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