Current status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 28 November 2012
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its policy on fuel poverty, what its position is on claims by Ignacio Galan of Iberdrola that Scottish Power is the only energy utility company in the UK losing money.
The Scottish Government is working to tackle fuel poverty and protect Scottish consumers. We are tackling fuel poverty through a range of initiatives, including working with each of the big six energy supply companies, and a range of other key interests, to maximise support for Scottish households, particularly those who are vulnerable. In addition, the Scottish Government is committing £65million per year to the National Retrofit Programme to ensure maximum support to hard-pressed households to install energy efficiency measures and help them manage their energy consumption more efficiently. The scheme aims to make Scotland as attractive as possible for energy companies to meet their environmental obligations and help vulnerable households.
Ofgem, the independent UK energy regulator, is responsible for regulation of the energy markets in England, Scotland and Wales. To ensure Scottish consumers can get the best possible energy deal, the Scottish Government is pressing Ofgem and energy companies to deliver a simpler, clearer, fairer and more competitive energy market for all consumers. In doing so, we believe energy companies must strike the right balance between profit, investment in improving Scotland’s grid network infrastructure, ensuring Scottish consumers get the best deal and helping to tackle fuel poverty. We are also pressing the UK Government to deliver its recent commitment to legislate to ensure companies move customers onto the lowest tariff.