Northern Ireland Fuel Poverty Coalition

 

Established in 2010 the Northern Ireland Fuel Poverty Coalition of 160 members brings together a breadth of organisations and individuals across the voluntary, statutory, business and private sectors.  All are united by the fact that they wish to highlight the urgent action needed to eradicate fuel poverty in Northern Ireland.

Fuel poverty occurs when a household is unable to afford the essential amount of energy needed to heat their home to a level that is healthy and safe, and for lighting, appliances and cooking.

The Department for Social Development’s Warmer Healthier Homes – A New Fuel Poverty Strategy for Northern Ireland 2011 stated:

‘A household is in fuel poverty if, in order to maintain an acceptable level of temperature throughout the home, the occupants would have to spend more than 10% of their income on all household fuel use.’

Over 290,000 households in Northern Ireland cannot afford to heat their homes.  These homes are living in fuel poverty.  The Coalition believes no one in Northern Ireland should have to live in a cold home.  We have come together to highlight the urgent actions needed to eradicate fuel poverty.

Our Call to the Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive is to

  • Develop a detailed and costed action-plan setting out how and when fuel poverty will be eradicated in Northern Ireland; and
  • Provide support to households in severe fuel poverty to stay warm until fuel poverty is eradicated here in Northern Ireland.

Our Aim is

To provide and promote a co-ordinated and collective response to the Northern Ireland fuel poverty crisis from a broad range of interested organisations, giving fuel poor households a strong voice to effect positive change by providing scrutiny, comment and critique on government action and spend.

The Fuel Poverty Coalition will achieve this aim by

  • Securing support from the Northern Ireland Executive and Assembly on the priority actions required to eradicate fuel poverty in order to keep people warm and well in their homes;
  • Bringing a sharper, co-ordinated and coherent focus to the fuel poverty crisis which exists in Northern Ireland;
  • Engaging with and influencing key decision makers on interventions  which can have a real impact on fuel poverty; and
  • Seeking to ensure that public funds allocated to addressing fuel poverty actually make a sustained difference to households in fuel poverty.