Tory leadership candidates ‘ignoring winter fuel crisis’ urged to do more for struggling families

Tory leadership candidates are “ignoring” the winter fuel crisis and should set out how they would help families and businesses, leading charities have said.

Martin Lewis, founder of MoneysavingExpert.com, warned the energy crisis was “potentially more dangerous to lives than the pandemic” and the country could face “cataclysmic” problems this winter as he received his CBE at Windsor Castle on Wednesday.

The consumer expert condemned the MPs running in the Tory leadership contest for their “deafening silence” on how they would tackle the energy crisis on becoming prime minister in the autumn.

Many of the candidates in the race to replace Boris Johnson in Number 10 have promised to cut fuel duty if elected, however, they are yet to set out a detailed plan of how they would tackle the cost of living crisis.

Now, more than 40 charities and campaign groups including Oxfam, Save the Children and Fuel Poverty Action have written to each candidate calling on them to detail how they would “keep people safe and warm this winter”.

They are concerned key decisions on the cost of living crisis will be delayed until the new leader is elected in the autumn after the prime minister said any new policies must wait until his successor is in place.

The groups are calling for the leadership hopefuls to draw up detailed policies as soon as possible so they can be implemented once they are elected.

In their letter, they warned the country is “headed into a potentially catastrophic winter”.

They wrote: “In eleven weeks’ time, more than a third of households - many millions of British families -  may not be able to afford to heat their homes.

“Meanwhile, earlier this year, 2.3 million families on low income were going without enough food and were unable to keep their homes warm.

“In the words of Martin Lewis last week: ’millions of households will be forced into poverty unless we act. This is a genuine, urgent emergency’.”

Simon Francis, co-ordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, told The Times: “The candidates to be our next prime minister are ignoring the single most pressing issue facing families across the country.

“Unless they take bold and decisive action now, the next prime minister’s first act as leader will be to preside over the worst winter for millions of people in living memory.”

It recently emerged councils are planning to offer “warm spaces” for residents to go to during winter if they cannot afford heating with soaring energy bills.

Mr Lewis asked on social media whether “warm banks” - similar to food banks but for people in need of heating - would be needed this year.

Some responded saying the wheels were already in motion to set up free public warm spaces as rocketing energy prices cripple budgets further in the cost of living crisis.

Bristol mayor Marvin Rees replied saying it was “completely true” that a heating equivalent of food banks would be needed this year.

Another reply shared a letter from Gateshead Council that called on local partners to help set up a Warm Spaces scheme.