Report to the People
Turning up the Heat on Fuel Poverty
Well the nights are fair drawing in.
And, as the leaves begin to turn and the adverts for sun tan cream and lawnmowers are replaced on our television screens with those for Coalite or Lemsip, we look forward to closing the windows against the cold night air, turning up the heating and making ourselves a hot toddie.
Sadly for some, though, their living rooms bear no resemblance to those featured on the warm, welcoming, wintertime adverts. In fact, some houses in Scotland would be better suited to advertising Farmfoods.
Fuel poverty (a fancy way of saying you can’t afford to heat your home properly, as to do so would take over 10% of your income) can cause many to dread the coming of winter.
Not, it has to be said however, as many as there used to be. The Scottish Parliament is already committed to ending fuel poverty within 15 years and, since 1999, over 140,000 homes have been improved under the Warm Deal. Since 2001, almost 10,000 central heating systems have been installed under the Scottish Parliament’s Central Heating Programme.
But, while there is still one person living in a cold, damp house, the job is not done.
The Scottish Parliament is determined to build on what has been achieved to date and drive the process forward. Accordingly, the Scottish Fuel Poverty Statement, published last month, sets an ambitious target of reducing the number of people living in fuel poverty by 30% over the next four years.
Last week in the Scottish Parliament, MSPs had their chance to debate how this can be achieved. In addition to pressing on with the Central Heating and Warm Deal schemes, ideas put forward included encouraging more partnership working between government, the voluntary sector and industry. Transco’s work to provide advice to front-line professionals on energy efficiency measures and health was just one example. The importance of improving energy efficiency – from providing free energy saving advice to tightening building regulations – was also highlighted.
With the determination of government and the co-operation of all key players, we can meet these targets and make sure that in years to come no-one in Scotland has to make the choice between heating and eating.
For your free, straight forward guide to the Scottish Parliament’s Central Heating Programme and / or Warm Deal and to find out if you could benefit, simply call my office on 791 820.
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