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Energy suppliers, local landlords and representatives from Wirral Council joined local MP for Wallasey, Angela Eagle at an energy summit aimed at helping local people keep warm throughout the winter.
Neil Townsend, divisional director for Riverside Housing joined a panel at the Gosvenor Ballroom, Wallasey to answer questions and to offer advice on how to beat fuel poverty.
As part of its ongoing campaign to tackle fuel poverty, Neil joined Riverside Group directors nationwide to ask local MPs to call on the Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks to reduce the tariff for
pre-payment meter customers.
Pre-payment meter customers can pay up to £300 more than households who can access the best deals online, despite being among the energy companies poorest customers. They can also pay up to
£90 more for their gas and electricity than those who receive quarterly bills.
Neil Townsend said: “We are giving people practical advice through our welfare benefits advisor on what they can do when they get into financial difficulties paying utilities bills. It can be
quite confusing for people bombarded with information from many different providers. We are making a very strong stand against an unfair system that penalises the poor through our lobbying
activity.”
Energy suppliers at the summit outlined a range of schemes for people struggling to pay their fuel bills.
Angela Eagle added: “Lots of people could qualify for assistance with their fuel bills, that’s why we held the conference to invite local people to find out more. I want to make sure
that everyone who qualifies for assistance gets it.”
