Fuel poverty means being unable to afford to keep warm. We consider a household to be in fuel poverty if it needs to spend more than 10 percent of its income on fuel for adequate heating (usually 21 degrees for the main living area, and 18 degrees for other occupied rooms).
Living in cold homes can damage people’s health and affect their quality of life. The elderly, children, and those with a disability or long-term illness are especially vulnerable.
There are three main causes of fuel poverty:
- poor energy efficiency in the home
- high energy prices
- low household income
28 February 2011: Warm Home Discount consultation: Government Response
The Warm Home Discount consultation closed on January 14 2011 and the Government published its response on February 28.
The Energy Act 2010 provided a framework to mandate energy companies to provide support to the fuel poor, including powers to give greater guidance and direction on the types of households eligible for support and the form of support they should be given.
The Coalition Government’s proposals for the Warm Home Discount scheme were set out in the consultation which was published on December 2nd 2010 and ran for 6 weeks to January 14th 2011.
During the consultation period, DECC actively engaged with interested parties, holding meetings and workshops with energy suppliers and representatives of charities and consumer groups.
The Government’s response can be viewed on the Consultation on the Warm Home Discount web page.