Mark Jenkinson MP has urged Cumberland Council to adopt a Conservative Government scheme to address fuel poverty – adding that the leadership should have done so much sooner.
A proposal to approve the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) Statement of Intent is due to go before the council Executive next week [Tuesday, April 23rd], but the scheme itself has been up and running since 2022.
The initiative designed to slash carbon emissions and reduce household bills places an obligation on energy companies to deliver energy efficiency measures to domestic premises.
Mark Jenkinson MP said: “I am happy to see that this excellent Government scheme is finally going before the Executive and that it has been recommended for approval.
“It is unfortunate, however, that the council has been dragging its heels on this whilst thousands of my constituents, eligible for this help before today, have been forced to wait.
“This scheme has been up and running for over two years now – and the local authority could and should have done something last year.
“We have been raising this with Cumberland Council since summer of last year, but it only now that the leadership has found time to put this on their agenda. I would have expected this to be much higher on the council’s list of priorities.
“The date of the meeting falls on St George’s Day. Though he is more famous as our dragon-slaying patron saint, he also helped the poor, and vulnerable.
“I hope the Executive follows his example and votes this through in line with officer recommendations – it would go at least some way towards offsetting the damage this Labour council has done by hiking up council tax to some of the highest levels seen in England – hitting the pockets of some of the poorest and most vulnerable in our communities.”
The Energy Company Obligation 4 (ECO4) scheme is an obligation on energy suppliers to install energy saving measures to low income and vulnerable households.
Under the scheme energy suppliers can deliver up to 50 per cent of their affordable warmth funding installing energy efficient measures to households that are declared eligible by local authorities (LAs).
Councils are required to publish a ‘statement of intent’ to set out the criteria they intend to use to identify vulnerable households.
The ECO4 scheme supports households on the lowest incomes. Households in receipt of means tested benefits will be eligible.
