Cost of Heating Oil Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Energy Security & Net Zero
Adam Dance
Main Page: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)Department Debates - View all Adam Dance's debates with the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero
(1 day, 8 hours ago)
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Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)
It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Dr Allin-Khan. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for North Norfolk (Steff Aquarone) for securing this really important debate.
According to House of Commons Library data, Yeovil has a higher percentage of households using only oil for heating than the UK average. Because they are not protected by the Ofgem energy price cap, families across my area are suffering from rising costs due to a war they never wanted. One constituent told me that they suffered a 60% week-on-week increase in prices; on top of that, they struggled to find suppliers delivering to their area. Another constituent pointed out to me that they were able only to purchase a minimum amount of oil, which suggests that suppliers may be profiting from the situation.
The £53 million announced by the Government is welcome, but amounts to only about £35 per household. That is not good enough. Rural communities deserve a bit better than that, for sure, so the Government must enact a three-month zero rating for VAT on heating oil for all residential homes and develop a price cap to protect rural households from sudden increases in the price of heating oil.
I also urge the Minister to investigate the impact of rising oil prices on the spending and value of rural households, something I have heard real concern about. We also need proper long-term investment in rural home upgrades. We are proposing a 10-year energy home upgrade programme to make houses cheaper to heat. That has to start with free insulation for those on low incomes and ensuring that all new homes are zero carbon, to improve savings through energy efficiency. I would welcome the Minister to Somerset to discuss that further and to see how the crisis is affecting my constituents in Yeovil.