Cambridgeshire MP calls for 'price cap' on heating oil
The party slammed the Government for failing to put any protection in place for rural communities
The Liberal Democrats have urgently called for a price cap for those who rely on heating oil, as rural households face a sudden and severe rise in energy bills following the war in Iran.
Pippa Heylings has demanded the Government bring in a price cap on heating oil which would protect residents in South Cambridgeshire who rely on oil fired heating from the astronomic price rises as a result of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The Liberal Democrats said ministers should urgently draw up a system to shield off-grid households before it’s too late.
The party slammed the Government for failing to put any protection in place for rural communities who rely on heating oil and are vulnerable to huge spikes in the global energy market, with prices near trebling since the start of the Iran war.
According to House of Commons Library data, 15,768 of households in South Cambridgeshire are off the gas grid. Pippa Heylings has said that it is ‘completely unfair’ that those who rely on heating oil are currently excluded from the protection that the Ofgem energy price cap affords households connected to the grid, leaving them exposed to price spikes caused by the war in the Middle East.
The party has put forward several measures to help rural households with rising bills, including introducing a three-month zero-rating of VAT on heating oil to provide immediate relief from spiralling prices. The party has also called on the Government to upgrade homes for the long-term and make them cheaper to heat, starting with free insulation for those on low incomes and making sure all new homes are zero-carbon.
Pippa Heylings has also backed a motion in Parliament calling for a package of help to support those living in South Cambridgeshire who are struggling with the rising bills.
Liberal Democrat MP for South Cambridgeshire, Pippa Heylings, said:
“I have heard from hundreds of constituents in South Cambridgeshire who are deeply worried about how they will pay for their skyrocketing heating oil bills, which have tripled in the past week. The Government must urgently put in place a price cap on heating oil to shield them from these unaffordable price spikes.
“It is completely unfair that those who rely on heating oil in rural areas have been left high and dry without any protection from the spiralling energy prices caused by the war in the Middle East.
“Whilst the Chancellor sticks her fingers in her ears, families in South Cambridgeshire are paying the price. She must now listen to the Liberal Democrat call for a price cap on heating oil - households simply cannot afford a Government that fails to act.”