Tom Blenkinsop – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Blenkinsop on 2016-02-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps she is taking to reduce the number of children living in fuel poverty.

Andrea Leadsom

We are investing close to £1 billion a year to help consumers through a reformed supplier obligation and Warm Home Discount, and plan to reform both schemes to focus that funding better on those that need it most.

Our ability to do that is strengthened significantly by the introduction of an improved definition of fuel poverty which captures those in genuine need who are facing the overlapping problem of a low household income and high energy costs.

This low income high costs indicator has meant a change in the demographic of who is considered to be fuel poor in England – with homes with at least one child now accounting for nearly half of the fuel poor population.

We will be consulting on our proposals to reform the supplier obligation and the Warm Home Discount later this year.