Press release I sent today: LIB DEM COUNCILLOR DEMANDS ACTION FROM NORTH EAST COUNCILS
A Lib Dem County Councillor has discovered that barely 11% of people eligible for a £135 discount on their energy bills are receiving it in County Durham.
Councillor Mark Wilkes contacted the North East’s biggest Energy Supplier NPower to find out how many of its customers were receiving the Warm Homes Discount.
The £135 discount was agreed by the big six energy companies following discussions with the Coalition Government in 2010. The aim was to help reduce fuel poverty, but it is clear that most eligible customers are not getting the discount.
It is paid to residents in receipt of pension credit automatically, but tens of thousands of additional residents across the North East on low incomes need to register with their suppliers.
NPower has 65,000 customers across County Durham alone and estimates as many as ten thousand could be receiving the discount but at present only 1015 are. If this is the same across all the big six companies then 30,000 of the County’s poorest residents are missing out on a £135 credit. This is set to rise to £140 next year.
Across the North East as a whole there are 1.12 million households. It is likely that as many as 120,000 of these households are in fuel poverty and not receving the Warm Homes Discount.
Councillor Wilkes (Framwellgate and Newton Hall) near Durham City says “It is very clear to me that energy compaines are not doing enough to check if their customers are getting the discount – why would they though – it comes out of their billion pound profits!”
However Cllr Wilkes, who is the Lib Dem spokesman on Housing and Regeneration on the Unitary Council places most blame at the door of local councils saying “Durham County Council has completely failed to notify residents about this and I expect the same goes for may other councils too. It is time for the government to step in and insist that every resident in receipt of benefits or on a low income is told about this discount by Councils and where necessary helped to sign up.”
Councils are the only organisations with the necessary information to be able to identify all residents who are eligible using the data they hold about the income and benefits residents receive.
Councillor Wilkes along with his colleagues and volunteers is set to deliver thousands of leaflets across the area he covers telling residents about the discount, the second time they will have done this in their area.
The Liberal Democrat councillor applauded the Lib Dems in government for bringing in the scheme and urged Labour run councils to do more adding “It is clear that in government the Liberal Democrats have put in place a great scheme to help cut fuel poverty. On the ground in the North East though it is not filtering through because of a failure of Labour-run Councils to publicise it.
“I urge all councils across the North East to write to every household they think might be eligible. If they do not they will be negligent if any of our poorest residents struggle this winter.”
According to calculations if every eligible houshold was in receipt of the discount there would be a £16 million boost to the North East economy. Households with a total income of less than £16,000 or in receipt of certain credits like income support are eligible for the discount if they can show that they are in receipt of certain benefits or work related credits. Each energy company has slightly different rules, so everyone is urged to call their supplier straight away if they think they may be eligible.
Conservative MPs are currently campaigning to have discounts like the Warm Homes Discount scrapped but Lib Dems in the Coalition Government are resisting this. It is possible the government could bring the scheme under government control in December.