Business of the House

Margaret Ferrier Excerpts

Thursday 20th July 2023 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

I am sorry to hear that the hon. Lady has not had a response. What I will do is contact the Department again on her behalf. In such cases where the Department is just not responding, we will also call in the permanent secretary, and I will do that on this occasion. I will follow up this afternoon, as I know the House is rising today, to urge them to contact the hon. Lady at least to give her an update on the matter.

[Margaret Ferrier (Rutherglen and Hamilton West) (Ind)]

When my constituent lost power, Scottish Power transferred her on to a prepayment meter as an emergency fix. Three months later, her meter has not been repaired properly, causing major ramifications including her falsely being contacted by debt collectors. My constituent and my team have been in constant communication with ScottishPower, but the situation remains unresolved. Will the Leader of the House ask the Secretary of State for Energy, Security and Net Zero to make a statement on holding large energy companies to account for poor customer service?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I am very sorry to hear about that case, and I will of course ensure that the Secretary of State has heard what the hon. Lady has said. Hopefully someone from ScottishPower’s media or public affairs team will be tuned in to the Chamber, and will have heard our dismay at those poor standards of customer service. We hope that the situation will be rectified.