Fuel Poverty

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs – in the Senedd at 1:58 pm on 11 December 2019.

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Photo of David Melding David Melding Conservative 1:58, 11 December 2019

Minister, I note that the Scottish Government has changed the definition of fuel poverty, and this following a legal challenge, so that it's now defined as a household where residents are on low incomes and they need to spend a high proportion of that income on fuel. The current definition is households that spend 10 per cent of their income on fuel, and that could capture a very wealthy couple who decide to live in a historic building and spend 10 per cent as a life choice on heating it, and that's not really what we want to capture. We need better data so that we are really getting to those who need the most assistance.