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Labour Bill aims to tackle growing problem of fuel poverty

Issued : Monday 5 May, 2008

The Labour Party is to publish a Private Members Bill that would require the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources to publish and implement a strategy for reducing fuel poverty.

The Labour Party Spokesperson on Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Liz McManus, said today that with the constant rise in fuel prices over recent months, more and more low income families were experiencing real difficulty in meeting basic requirements for heat and light and warned that this situation was likely to worsen as measures to tackle climate change kick in.
"Fuel poverty refers to the inability to heat ones home to an adequate level. People living in fuel poverty are living in cold, damp, energy inefficient housing. The accepted definition of fuel poverty is when there is a need to spend greater than 10% of the household income on fuel to achieve an acceptable level of warmth.

"At present there are there are no comprehensive up to date national statistics available on the number of people experiencing fuel poverty in Ireland. It has been estimated however that around 60,000 Irish households live in persistent fuel poverty and a further 160,000 or so experience intermittent fuel poverty. Other estimates of existing fuel poverty range from 14% to 17.4% of households.
"Low income housing, either social or private housing, are generally poorly insulated and inefficient in energy terms. The level of fuel poverty in the private rented sector is almost three times higher than that found among mortgage holders. It exists both in rural and urban settings.
"The most vulnerable in our society are most affected by fuel poverty. A recent survey, published by the St Vincent de Paul, found that 79% of lone parents, 78% of elderly and 81% of local authority tenants struggled to pay for energy and heating costs in their homes. Older people are more likely to experience fuel poverty due to lower standards of housing coupled with lower incomes. Older people living alone are particularly vulnerable.

"Living in a home that you are unable to heat to a sufficient level has direct and indirect affects on both physical and mental health. Ireland has among the highest levels of excess winter mortality in Europe, with an estimated 2,800 excess deaths on the island over the winter months.

"As fuel costs rise and the measures to tackle climate change kick in, people living in fuel poverty are badly affected. Many live in poorly insulated or even substandard housing, both in the public and private sector. While the Minister for Communication, Energy and Natural Resources is focussed on measures to combat climate change he appears to have little understanding about the difficulties experienced by those on low incomes struggling to get by.

"Recently the Minister announced the Home Energy Saving Scheme which is available in certain geographic areas like North Tipperary, Clare, Dundalk and Limerick. The reality is that those with disposable incomes will avail of this grant scheme as has clearly happened with the majority of existing grant schemes. Assisting the householder with a Porsche in the garage to install a solar panel is not a substitute for a targeted approach to support an old age pensioner to keep warm in a sustainable way.

Energy costs in Ireland rose by 33% between 2002 and 2006. When the ESB announced its ambitious scheme to invest in renewable energies concerns were expressed that the cost of their €22 billion plan will be passed on to the consumer. As the price of energy continues to increase the numbers of those living in fuel poverty is set to rise.
Under the terms of our Bill, the Fuel Poverty and Energy Conservation Bill, 2008, the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources will be required, within twelve months, to publish and implement a strategy for reducing fuel poverty. The Minister will then be responsible for setting targets for the implementation of that strategy.

For the purposes of the Bill a person is regarded as living in fuel poverty if their household, because of low income or poor and energy inefficient housing is unable to maintain its accommodation at a safe and reasonably comfortable temperature. The strategy would require the Minister to specify a comprehensive set of measures to ensure the efficient use of energy and set a target date for achieving the objective of ensuring that, as far as practicable, persons do not live in fuel poverty.

Action is now urgently required or this problem will get much worse over the coming years. I hope that the government will accept our Bill or that it will, at a minimum, prompt them into action of their own.