Hyland Slams Onslaught Against the Working Class

The savage onslaught against the disadvantaged and vulnerable continues unabated according to independent councillor Davy Hyland.

This comes after it was announced there would be an increase of 18.6% in electricity prices from October 1st.

If that’s not bad enough it also been revealed that coal prices will rise between 4-10% next month

Ordinary people are already suffering immense hardship and with fuel poverty on the rise this means it is only going to get worse.

Figures released earlier this year show that more than 44% of people in the Six Counties are already living in fuel poverty and simply cannot afford to heat their homes properly. With the introduction of these new increases in electricity and coal prices, it is patently obvious that even more homes and families are going to fall into the bracket of being 'fuel poor'.

As usual it’s the poorest and most vulnerable in our society who will suffer while the Stormont politicians are powerless to do anything about it.

Indeed, under the Stormont administration, fuel poverty has actually worsened. In 2004, it was estimated that around 24% of all households in the North were experiencing fuel poverty. Seven years later that figure has almost doubled. That shocking statistic is a scathing indictment of the failure of the Stormont administration to effect real and meaningful change to the everyday lives of the less well-off in our society.

In contrast, the political parties at Stormont are united in protecting the wealth of the most affluent in this society by seeking a reduction in the level of corporation tax paid by large businesses and multi-national companies.

It’s ridiculous that, at a time when working class people have to pay such vast amounts for basic household essentials and when many are already struggling to make ends meet, the Stormont adminstration prefers to protect the rich and ignore the plight of the poor.

The reality is that those very people who are struggling to survive will end up using less fuel to heat their homes. The result of this will mean increased fuel poverty and the inevitable increase in cold related illnesses and deaths.