Cost of Heating Oil

Michelle Welsh Excerpts

Wednesday 15th April 2026 Westminster Hall

[Michelle Welsh (Sherwood Forest) (Lab)]

I thank the hon. Member for North Norfolk (Steff Aquarone) for securing today’s debate. Nearly 1,000 people across my constituency of Sherwood Forest rely solely on heating oil to heat their homes and provide hot water. The sharp increase in prices is having a particularly severe impact on rural communities—as we have discussed—such as Wellow in my constituency, where access to alternative forms of heating is often unavailable. I welcome the Government’s introduction of support schemes to assist the most vulnerable and the Government’s swift action on that. It is right that those most in need are supported first, but also we must recognise that many households risk slipping through the net and require more support. These people do not qualify for other financial support, such as universal credit, but are not in a financial position to absorb such a hit as this financial crisis is causing.

Let us face it: heating and water are not a luxury, but a necessity. I have been contacted by constituents in Blidworth who have been forced to turn off their heating and hot water to preserve their oil stock. They have told me of their worry about the risk that that will pose to their health, especially if they are unable to secure more oil. At a time when the duration of the conflict in the middle east remains uncertain with Trump’s reckless war, many people across Sherwood Forest who rely on heating oil are understandably anxious about the future, especially as heating oil prices continue to rise rapidly and individual stock levels are shrinking.

I urge my hon. Friend the Minister to extend the current support to all those who rely on heating oil, and ask the Government to do more specifically to help those in areas where they have no other source to rely on and to help the most vulnerable. In my constituency, it is mothers with babies who are really struggling at the moment.