Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the impact of the recent increase in the cost of heating oil on households in rural areas who have no alternative means of fuelling their heating and hot water.

Heating oil prices are primarily driven by the underlying price in the global market of crude oil, though are also influenced by a range of other supply and demand factors, including refining capacity, stock levels, distribution costs, retail margins and seasonal demand variations with prices rising in winter as demand increases. There is an open market for the supply of domestic heating oil in the UK as the Government believe this provides the best long-term guarantee of competitive prices.

Financial support remains available for heating oil customers with energy bills, if eligible, through the Warm Home Discount, Winter Fuel Payment and Cold Weather Payment schemes.