Oral Answers to Questions

Nick Smith Excerpts

Tuesday 10th January 2012 Commons Chamber

[Nick Smith (Blaenau Gwent) (Lab)]

6. What discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on the effects of fuel poverty on health.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health (Anne Milton)]

I and my officials have worked closely with the Department of Energy and Climate Change on the development and implementation of the cold weather plan for England, which aims to reduce the health impacts of cold weather on vulnerable people. We have also put £30 million into the warm homes healthy people fund to fund local authority projects to reduce the impact of cold weather.

[Nick Smith]

The Marmot report confirmed that cold homes are bad for our health. My local newspaper has highlighted the case of a low-income working family who have to choose between food and heat every day, with no help from their energy provider. Will the Minister ensure that energy companies do more to tackle fuel poverty, so that the NHS does not have to foot the bill for their profit?

[Anne Milton]

As I said, my colleagues in DECC are working closely with the energy companies. I point out to the hon. Gentleman that this coalition Government are the first to put in place the cold weather plan to reduce those 27,000 excess winter deaths. Perhaps his local paper would like to contact the Welsh Assembly Government to see what they are doing.