Fuel poverty expert comes to DMU

The energy efficiency expert who first coined the term ‘fuel poverty’ has given a talk at De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) about the issue.

Dr Brenda Boardman is an Emeritus Fellow of the University of Oxford's Environmental Change Unit and has been one of the leading figures on energy policy for several decades. She came to DMU on Tuesday to speak about the ongoing issue of fuel poverty – said to be where a household cannot afford to keep their home adequately warm ‘at a reasonable cost’ given their income.

Dr Boardman gave a talk to a group of academics and industry experts, including representatives from energy efficiency experts Mark Group and Leicester City Council.

It is believed up to 2.46 million households in the UK are in fuel poverty, but Dr Boardman warned in her talk of the ‘hidden fuel poor’ who are unwilling to change suppliers or accept benefits to change their situation.

Dr Boardman said: “The whole problem of fuel poverty, despite being slightly swept under the carpet, is actually getting worse. Everyone is entitled to a warm and comfortable home.

“There is a substantial role for local authorities to play, and they should be given responsibility to meet fuel poverty targets, whether that is working alongside private companies, local associations or even the local builder.”

Another issue that Dr Boardman highlighted is the current definition of fuel poverty, which is calculated based on a number of factors. Previously it was defined as any household spending more than 10% of its annual income on fuel usage.

Dr Boardman said: “There is no absolute standard that shows people are in fuel poverty. It’s not like being one-legged – fuel poverty is what you define it as.

“There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that some major changes have to occur.”

Paul Eccleshare, Energy Manager at DMU, was at the event and said: “These kinds of meetings are going on all the time, and fuel poverty is an important issue for a number of reasons, one of which is health wise. Cold homes can make the elderly ill, and the NHS spends huge amounts of money each year to help them get better again, only for them to return home and their health drop again.

“[Fuel poverty] is something that has been in the politicians’ sights for years but nothing has been done about it.

“And while the talk today is about private households, energy efficiency is also important for DMU. From a cost basis, any money we save can be put back into education, and from a climate change point of view we are always trying to cut emissions.”