Stay Informed With HeatingSave | Page 13

About 25 per cent of households are predicted to turn off their heating at some point next winter in order to save money on rising heating bills, says a price comparison website. Uswitch stated that in January a survey of nearly 1,600 of its customers had indicated that 20% of them had turned their heating off regularly in order to save money. Furthermore, the group predicts that with fuel tariffs expected to rise, the number will be higher this year.

Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) have been angered by the news that the Boiler Scrappage Scheme brought forward by the Scottish National Party (SNP) Government has run dry two days after its launch.

A scheme has been reintroduced which can help households struggling to pay their energy bills. The Warm Front scheme has reopened for applications, and this provides heating and insulation home improvements for England’s poorest families and most inefficient homes. Among the heat-saving measures are loft and cavity wall insulation, and draught proofing. It is hoped that the scheme will help more than 90,000 households by offering heating upgrades worth up to £3,500.

The cold spell over the winter led to a total rise in greenhouse gases in the UK in 2010. Figures releases by the Department of Energy and Climate Change showed carbon dioxide, which accounts for about 84 per cent of UK emissions, was up 3.8 per cent. Carbon dioxide emissions from homes, which relate only to heating and cooking with gas, rose by 13.4 per cent in 2010 due to shivering households turning up the heating.

Consumer watchdog, Consumer Focus, said it was worried that fuel prices would rise further in the wake of British Gas seeing its profits rise 98 per cent in the first half of this year. Audrey Gallacher, head of energy policy at the organisation, said: “We are concerned that energy firms may actually raise prices this winter.

Protesters entered the headquarters of British Gas to demonstrate over fuel prices.

The government has announced plans to install all 30 million homes in the UK with a smart meter within a decade. The process of the meters being fitted will start in 2014 and trials have shown that they can reduce bills by 5 to 10 per cent. These devices take electricity readings every half an hour, daily readings of your gas usage, and transmit all the data to your supplier.

Voters are interested in how each party”s policies could affect the money in their pockets. Plenty has been pledged in the parties’ manifestos on pensions, property and children before the general election day on Thursday, May 6. Apart from a brief mention of winter fuel, little attention seems to have been paid to reducing fuel prices. HeatingSave tops the polls with a quick and money-saving solution.

The Guardian newspaper is running a Lighter Later campaign to have the clocks permanently changed, adding that continuing to move the clocks forward in summer, so they become one hour ahead of British Summer Time and two hours ahead of GMT, could also deliver carbon savings. Research the paper has commissioned has been presented at an event at Parliament.

The UK Treasury could fight EU calls to end tax breaks for energy-saving goods.

A minister has urged hard-hit energy customers to “vote with your feet” in the event of high fuel bills. The Bank of England has warned it expects household energy bills to rise by 15 per cent this year. “Consumers don’t have to take price increases lying down. If an energy company hits you with a price increase, you can hit them back where it hurts – by shopping around and voting with your feet,” Energy Secretary Chris Huhne told the Observer newspaper.

To support the construction industry, energy secretary Chris Huhne said that government policy will stop any ‘cowboy’ installers taking on jobs under the Green Deal, with registered tradespeople being given a quality mark to put customers’ minds at rest. The Energy Bill was introduced to Parliament last year and includes provision for a new Green Deal which the Government believes will revolutionise the energy efficiency of British properties.