Energy companies should pay for home insulation - Black

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 3rd Sep 2008

The Welsh Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Social Justice, Peter Black has joined local council leaders from all parties in calling for the energy companies to use their windfall profits to pay for an ongoing national home insulation programme.

"The energy companies have done very nicely out of rising fuel prices, with most of them announcing eye-watering profits as a consequence", said Mr. Black. "Like other essential services privatised by the Conservatives, they are happy to pass on their costs to the consumer, but seem oddly reluctant to have their shareholders play their part by reducing dividends.

"By contrast, people and families on fixed and low incomes are experiencing fuel poverty as never before and the situation is likely to get worse with the next round of price increases getting slapped on by the energy companies just as winter approaches.

"A national home insulation scheme, paid for by these same companies from their excess profits would be one way of bringing some element of fairness back into the situation we face.

"Such a scheme would lift thousands of Welsh people out of fuel poverty, cut household bills, and reduce carbon emissions, thereby helping to combat climate change. Labour should stop dithering over a windfall tax and take this simple step immediately."