Debbie Abrahams
Main Page: Debbie Abrahams (Labour - Oldham East and Saddleworth)(11 years, 9 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Mrs Linda Riordan (Halifax) (Lab/Co-op)
6. What assessment he has made of changes in the level of fuel poverty since 2010.
Debbie Abrahams (Oldham East and Saddleworth) (Lab)
16. What assessment he has made of changes in the level of fuel poverty since 2010.
Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)
17. What assessment he has made of changes in the level of fuel poverty since 2010.
Gregory Barker
No, that is not the case. The hon. Lady knows that during the previous Parliament fuel poverty rose from 2 million to 5.5 million, and it continues to be a huge issue. The only way we will tackle it is not by chasing gas prices, but tackling the underlying cause—the fabric of our homes—and creating better, warmer and cheaper homes for people to live in.
Debbie Abrahams
In Oldham, more than 17,600 households —one in five—were in fuel poverty in 2010, but with energy bills up by as much as 20% that figure is likely to be much higher today. Oldham council is not content, however, to let the most vulnerable people in society suffer, and through a fair energy campaign, it is ensuring that people in my constituency can keep their homes warm without worrying about hefty energy bills. Will the Government take a lesson from Oldham council?
Gregory Barker
We are working collaboratively with local authorities up and down the country, which have a key role to play in delivering the green deal and ECO. It is by an area-based, street-by-street roll-out, rather than by chasing gas prices, that in the long term we will deal with fuel poverty once and for all.