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

Pre-payment Meters

Question: That is the point. For a long time my hon. Friend was missing the point of the question. He talked about the market, but not about discrimination by companies against people who opt for pre-payment meters. On several occasions, Members on the Front Bench have defended the marketplace, and the openness of the marketplace, while Opposition Front Benchers and the previous speaker, the hon. Member for Angus (Mr. Weir), call for more Government intervention and control. On what date did we switch places?

Answer: It's a funny old week, isn't it? Clearly, pre-payment meters involve capital expenditure. If there was no price differential, other customers, including many low-income people and many pensioners, would have to subsidise those on pre-payment meters. These are difficult issues. I am not relaxed about the fact that so many low-income families have different payment methods from the mainstream of society. I repeat that there is no easy solution, but I have told the hon. Member for Angus (Mr. Weir) that I will reconsider the issue.

Secondary information