As winter temperatures drop my own political blood pressure is rising thanks to cuts in winter fuel payments which will make life harder for many pensioners.
The Winter Fuel Payment will be £50 lower this year than in each of the last three years for a pensioner aged 60 or over and £100 lower for those aged 80 or over.
As well as cutting these payments, the decision to increase VAT to 20% in January has pushed up inflation and is costing pensioner couples an average of £275 a year.
The hike in VAT is also helping to choke off the recovery with the UK economy flat-lining over the past year with just 0.5% growth. The government should temporarily reverse the VAT rise.
And then there are soaring energy bills which are up by 20% this year, and nearly 50% over the last four years. Energy companies have seen their profits soar in the last six months - with their margin increasing from £15 per customer per head in June to £125 now.
I support the need to tackle the energy giants so we can have simple and fair tariffs, break up the dominance of the Big Six companies.
In the meantime, we can take action as individuals to reduce our bills. The Chief Executive of the energy trade association SBGI, Mike Foster has sent me a copy of a leaflet from the Heating and Hotwater Industry Council.
It contains some handy cost-effective and energy-efficient advice to help keep homes warm.
For instance, you don't have to use the central heating to heat the entire house. Use the thermostat valves on the radiators and keep them low or turned off in rooms that you don't use.
A quarter of your heat is lost through the roof and insulating the loft could save up to £150 a year. Impartial information and advice about grants and offers to help pay for loft insulation are at www.centralheating.co.uk
Draft excluders, properly fitted curtains and radiator foil can also conserve energy and save money. The leaflet is available from my office.
About 25,000 people die needlessly each year from cold related causes which means that political and individual action to cut energy bills is urgent.
Newcastle Chronicle and Journal
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