The Medway Labour and Co-operative Group have supported the wider Labour Party’s proposals to help people deal with the cost of living crisis. This comes off the back of the news of the highest levels of inflation in decades only last week. 

Cllr Vince Maple, Leader of the Medway Labour and Co-operative Group said: 

“We have seen 30 year record levels of inflation announced this week – this directly impacts on the cost of living for Medway residents.  Whether it is fuel bills, food bills or other household costs, families across Medway are under great pressure.  The Conservative administration here in Medway and in Westminster has simply failed to put safeguards in place and without change more families could fall into spiralling debt.”

Following her question regarding rising energy costs at Medway’s Full Council meeting on Thursday evening, Cllr Naushabah Khan, Medway Labour and Co-operative Group Spokesperson for Housing said:

“Domestic energy costs hit record levels last month, and are predicted to rise even higher. Over 10,000 households in Medway have been identified as suffering from fuel poverty, and having raised this issue at Full Council last night, I’m unable to say that I came away satisfied that the Council or the Government had a plan to deal with the magnitude of the problem we’re now facing.”

“We support the Labour Party’s proposal to help people now when they set out fully-funded measures to reduce the expected price rise in energy in April – saving most households around £200.”

Ed Miliband MP, Labour’s Shadow Climate Change and Net Zero Secretary, said:

“Families and businesses are facing an energy price crisis because a decade of failed Conservative energy policy has left us deeply vulnerable as a country.

“They failed to regulate the market, failed to protect our gas storage, failed to accelerate the renewable and nuclear transition, and failed to insulate homes.

“Labour will stand up for the millions of families across the country that are paying the cost for Tory failure.

“It is entirely right that the energy producers which are benefitting from this crisis are asked to pay their fair share.

“We will reform our broken energy system so we deliver the green transition we need, energy security, and bills that are affordable.”

Notes

Fuel poverty statistics for Medway can be found here https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/sub-regional-fuel-poverty-data-2021

Energy prices reach an all-time high in December 2021 https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jan/01/6m-homes-uk-pay-energy-bills-price-hike-fuel-poverty

Labour’s plan to reduce bills by £200

https://labour.org.uk/press/labour-slams-decade-of-failure-on-british-energy-with-plan-to-save-families-200-to-ease-immediate-crisis-costs/