27 March 2013: A parliamentary question asking about the numbers of fuel poor households in the UK, including for numbers at the regional level, helps provide an indication about the growth in fuel poverty in the capital over the past decade.
Data is only available as yet to 2010 (see PQ link above for references): updated statistics for 2011 and 2012 will be made available in June of this year. London is common with most other areas in observing a threefold increase in the numbers of fuel poor households as a consequence of increasing fuel prices – most notably from 2005/06 onwards. The Government is however currently working on a redefining the definition of fuel poverty and the proposals – as set out out in a consultation paper late last year – are anticipated to have a significant impact in London, as a consequence of housing costs now being taken into consideration (see earlier post here for details).