Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Edward Leigh (Conservative). It was answered on Thursday, 3 November 2005 on behalf of the Department of Trade and Industry.

Pre-payment Meters

Question: As the Minister has made clear, more than 5 million people pay for their gas or electricity with pre-payment meters, despite being some of the poorest people in the community. In March, the Public Accounts Committee found that on average they were paying a premium to the companies of £60 a year. That is unacceptable. What actions have the Government taken since our report was published to rectify the situation and how much has the premium reduced since that time?

Answer: This is a matter that concerns me but it is not an easy one. The question is whether those choices should be allowed to the customer; I think they should. There are difficulties with pre-payment meters such as the extra costs, which I acknowledge. I worry about that too, but the alternative might be more disconnections and there are many evils associated with that. The matter is difficult and we need to approach it in a balanced way.

Secondary information