Middle East: Economic Update

Torcuil Crichton Excerpts

Monday 9th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Rachel Reeves]

The freeze in fuel duty—Reform opposed it. The energy profits levy—the right hon. Gentleman introduced it when he was in the Conservative Government. I will take no lectures from him and the Tory tribute act sitting up there.

[Torcuil Crichton (Na h-Eileanan an Iar) (Lab)]

I thank the Chancellor for her statement, for her support for the armed forces, and for acknowledging the anxiety of constituents abroad. Closer to home—at home, in fact—half of my constituents in Na h-Eileanan an Iar outside the town of Stornoway rely on heating oil to heat their homes. They face great uncertainty, with no guarantee of delivery, or of price on delivery. I hear what Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis fears regarding price gouging and price rises, so I welcome Treasury talks and hope that they will lead to further scrutiny and regulation of this unregulated industry. Otherwise, I will have to introduce the Financial Secretary to the Treasury to the old Lewis tradition of cutting peat for winter fuel.

[Rachel Reeves]

I recognise that my hon. Friend’s constituents will be affected more than most by worries about the delivery and price of heating oil. That is why I have instructed the Competition and Markets Authority to look at price gouging and why the Financial Secretary to the Treasury will be meeting my hon. Friend and other concerned MPs on Wednesday this week.