Claire Hanna
Main Page: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)Off-grid Homes: Energy Support
Claire Hanna Excerpts(2 years, 1 month ago)
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Claire Hanna (Belfast South) (SDLP)
I thank the hon. Lady for bringing this important issue to the House. As the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) said, two thirds of Northern Irish homes are on oil, and half of the remaining third use keypad meters. My Assembly colleagues have brought forward a proposal to issue a voucher, consistent with the support we are giving to gas customers and based on the Northern Ireland high street voucher scheme, which we used last year. Is the hon. Lady aware of any modelling being done to allow the Government to issue support directly to households that they can use with oil suppliers in their area?
Fay Jones
As I say, we discussed this in great depth on the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, and I hope we continue to do so. I am not aware of any modelling, but I am keen for the Government to explore all options to see how this can be rectified. All hon. Members are keen to ensure parity.
There is a feeling of unfairness among the many rural households across the country that we collectively represent.