MP appeals for evidence for investigation into domestic fuel market

Isles MP Alistair Carmichael is asking constituents to contact him with details of difficulties they have faced with their energy suppliers as he prepares a submission for an investigation by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) into the domestic fuel market.

The review, announced last week, will examine the off-grid market in the UK and include an assessment of supplies of heating oil and other domestic fuels.

One individual who has already contacted Mr Carmichael told him he received a quote in December for 1,000 litres of oil that was 15 per cent higher than the price offered by the same company on the same day to one of his relatives on the mainland.

Mr Carmichael said: “Although some of the recent price hikes can be explained by the international price of oil, it is clear that people in Orkney and Shetland are forced to pay well over the odds for their domestic fuel. As someone whose home is off-grid I am all too aware of the strain that increases of this magnitude can put on household finances. I have argued for many years that consumers in the Northern Isles should be getting a better deal on their fuel and this OFT investigation is long overdue.

“I would encourage anyone in Orkney or Shetland who has experienced difficulties as a result of the high price of domestic fuel to contact me with details of the problems they have encountered.”