A leading authority on public health says the system for calculating most domestic fuel bills in the UK is contributing to thousands of deaths each winter. The UK Public Health Association (UKPHA) says two-tier tariffs, where the first units cost more, hit the poorest hardest. UKPHA chairman Professor John Ashton says winter death rates are much higher in Britain than in Scandinavia. Domestic fuel costs have risen steeply in recent years, but Prof Ashton says the problem is made worse by the two-tier tariff.