§ Mr. ConnartyTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action her Department is taking to combat fuel poverty among people in rural areas. [37992]
§ Mr. MeacherThe UK Fuel Poverty Strategy, published in November last year, set out the Government's goal to seek and end to fuel poverty, with the first target to ensure that by 2010, no vulnerable household need risk ill health due to a cold home.
The strategy's aim is to improve the energy efficiency of fuel poor households, to maintain the downward pressure on fuel bills, to tackle poverty and social exclusion.
The fuel poor in rural areas will benefit from these measures and from a number of pilot projects to help homes that are off the mains gas network and pilot the use of micro Combined Heat and Power.