Fuel Poverty

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Social Justice – in the Senedd at 2:15 pm on 8 June 2022.

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Photo of Mabon ap Gwynfor Mabon ap Gwynfor Plaid Cymru 2:15, 8 June 2022

(Translated)

I thank the Minister for that response. Of course, it's good to hear of the support currently available for some people. The increase in the cap on fuel prices, of course, will be challenging for all. According to the National Energy Action charity, we could see up to 45 per cent of all households in Wales suffering fuel poverty because of the rise in the cap. This is frightening. We're talking about 614,000 households in Wales.

But I want to focus on pre-payment meters in my question. One in five standard tariff electricity customers in north Wales pay through pre-payment meters, and that will certainly be higher in Dwyfor Meirionnydd. Because the cap has been increased since April, customers paying through pre-payment meters will see their costs increasing from £1,309 to £2,017 a year. Very often, these are the poorest people in society. They need more support than what you've outlined already, those using pre-payment meters, compared to others. All additional support is of benefit, of course, but what other support can you provide to people using pre-payment meters, and what discussions have you had with landlords, be they housing association or private landlords, in order to ensure that people won't enter fuel poverty because of these pre-payment meters?