Fuel poverty campaigners lose high court bid

Help the Aged and Friends of the Earth accused government of not doing enough to meet targets
Gas flame on hob
Fuel poverty figures are on the up. Photo: Steve Taylor/Getty



The judge ruled that government departments were not legally obliged to take action "whatever the cost".

A fuel poverty strategy was introduced under the Warm Homes and Energy Conservation Act 2000 with the stated intention of doing everything "reasonably practicable" to end fuel poverty among vulnerable households in England and Wales by 2010, and in all households by 2016.



At the hearing earlier this month the charities argued that the government was taking insufficient measures to meet their commitment and that the courts should intervene.

But McCombe said the government had taken up the challenge to eliminate fuel poverty by specifying that it would try, so far as reasonably practicable, to achieve the targets.

He added: "In doing so, it imported a statutory duty to make those efforts. It did not assume a statutory duty to achieve the desired results, whatever the cost."

Campaigners from the two groups said the ruling had exposed "a huge loophole" and they would continue to put pressure on the government to revise its "out of date" fuel poverty strategy

Ed Matthew, head of UK climate at Friends of the Earth, said: "The high court's decision reveals a huge loophole in the legal protection for people in fuel poverty - big enough for millions of households to fall through.

"The government may have escaped legal reprimand, but it's not off the hook - it still faces the judgment of the 5 million UK households suffering in fuel poverty today."

Mervyn Kohler, special adviser for Help the Aged, said the government was still obliged to end fuel poverty "both legally and morally".

He called for crisis payments to be made to low-income families to help them get through the coming winter.

"Although the government has been given a technical let-off, it cannot sit by while the number of people in fuel poverty escalates out of control," he said.

"In times of crisis, people look to the government for help - it must throw them a lifeline instead of allowing them to sink further into despair and anxiety. The intention of parliament to end fuel poverty was very clear in legislation - suffering must not be allowed to continue."

The judge gave Friends of the Earth and Help the Aged permission to take their case to the court of appeal.

He also ruled they would not have to meet the government's legal costs because they had brought the case in the public interest.