Andrew Harrop‚ Head of Policy for Age Concern and Help the Aged‚ said:

“Sadly the 7th annual fuel poverty progress report shows anything but progress in tackling this national scandal.  Since the period covered by the report‚ the problem has escalated and there are now over 5 million households in fuel poverty in the UK. 
 
“The human cost of fuel poverty is great‚ particularly among vulnerable older people.  This winter more than 2.5 million UK pensioner households will be in fuel poverty and many will be forced to choose between eating or heating their homes.  Their health will suffer and they will be wracked with anxiety about how they will manage to pay the next energy bill.

“The Government has taken some positive steps forward‚ such as adjustments to the Warm Front scheme and the new CESP scheme. But while these actions are praiseworthy‚ they don’t deploy anything like enough resource to attack fuel poverty with the urgency that is required. 

“The Government targets to end fuel poverty among vulnerable households by 2010 and among all households by 2016 target now look embarrassingly unattainable. 

“To end the misery of fuel poverty and ensure people are warmer and happier‚ the Government must commit to making the country’s entire housing stock is energy efficient‚ increase the Warm Front budget next year and scale up the progress on CESP.”