Official Report: search what was said in Parliament
The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.
All Official Reports of meetings in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
All Official Reports of public meetings of committees.
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Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee
Energy Price Rises
Meeting date: 11 May 2022
Elena Whitham
That is very interesting, and I am certain that this committee and my committee will follow closely the data that you say shows that self-disconnections are reducing. That does not chime with the evidence and the reality that we are seeing on the ground.
Sticking with data, there is not enough disaggregated, gendered data—as is usually the case—but there is strong circumstantial evidence that women are at a higher risk of experiencing circumstances known to make households more vulnerable to fuel poverty. I am thinking here about lower pay, women who have caring responsibilities, and women who head single-parent families. It is important that policy makers understand what role gender plays, and that they respond accordingly.
What gendered analysis did the UK Government do prior to agreeing to lifting the price cap? How do you intend to monitor its impact on women?
Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee
Energy Price Rises
Meeting date: 10 May 2022
Elena Whitham
With regard to those measures, are you saying that they are going to be increased and that sanctions are going to be applied to companies that do not actively look out for those individuals and start to offer them some type of support? In the past, people have been self-disconnected for years without any support being offered. Are you assuring this committee today—and me, as the convener of another committee—that that action is forthcoming?
Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee
Energy Price Rises
Meeting date: 10 May 2022
Elena Whitham
I have one further question. As is usually the case, there is not enough disaggregated gendered data, but there is strong circumstantial evidence that women are at higher risk of experiencing circumstances that are known to make households more vulnerable to fuel poverty. I am thinking about having lower incomes, heading single-parent families and having a carer status. It is important that policy makers understand what role gender might play, so that they can respond accordingly.
What gendered analysis has Ofgem, as a regulator, employed prior to lifting the price cap? How do you intend to monitor its impact on women going forward?
Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee
Energy Price Rises
Meeting date: 10 May 2022
Elena Whitham
Thank you, convener, and good morning.
I am also the convener of the Social Justice and Social Security Committee, and we have been taking a huge amount of evidence recently about debt and poverty. As you can imagine, that is an area that that committee is acutely focused on.
Several times, Mr Lawrence has mentioned that the current situation is unprecedented. To the people at the sharp end who we are taking evidence from, the situation feels like a return to the days when you could not afford a bag of coal, you had no heating and you had no means to cook some food.
Following on from Mark Ruskell’s questions, I will look at some data. If we think about winter 2021-22—the period that we have just come through—how difficult an increase in prices was that for consumers in Scotland to cope with? Have there been more self-disconnections? We know that there were self-disconnections already. In my local authority area, a couple of years ago we uncovered that around 300 people had self-disconnected. Will self-disconnection only increase as we go forward?
Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee
Energy Price Rises
Meeting date: 10 May 2022
Elena Whitham
Thank you.
Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee
Decision on Taking Business in Private
Meeting date: 10 May 2022
Elena Whitham
I have nothing to declare, convener.
Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee
Energy Price Rises
Meeting date: 10 May 2022
Elena Whitham
I think that that highlights the fact that we do not always have that information, and it is information that we need everybody to start pulling together.
Meeting of the Parliament
Topical Question Time
Meeting date: 10 May 2022
Elena Whitham
Does the minister agree that, although the Scottish Government can, to a point, use our devolved social security powers to put more money into people’s pockets and mitigate the harms of escalating fuel poverty, together with signposting assistance that is available through organisations such as Citrus Energy in Ayrshire, the UK Government holds the levers for delivering meaningful support to citizens and that, if it fails to do that, it sends a strong message to all struggling families that it just does not get it or it just does not care?
Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid)
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 4 May 2022
Elena Whitham
Voters in France recently joined voters in a number of European countries in rejecting the far right, with their dismissal of Marine Le Pen at the ballot box. What assurances can the cabinet secretary give that Scotland’s politics will also remain internationalist and free of hate?
Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid)
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 4 May 2022
Elena Whitham
To ask what assessment the Scottish Government has made of the potential impact on Scotland of the outcome of the French presidential election. (S6O-01039)
