The aim of the national fuel scheme is to assist householders who are on long-term social welfare or health board payments and who are unable to provide for their own heating needs. A payment of £5 per week or £8 per week in smokeless zones is paid to eligible households for 26 weeks from mid-October to mid-April, regardless of the temperature. As a consequence, there may be a small number of occasions when the allowance is not paid even though temperatures are unseasonably low and equally, the allowance is paid at times when temperatures are above the seasonal norm.
Expenditure on the national fuel scheme has increased by approximately 17% in the last seven years from £37.5 million in 1993 to £44 million in 1999.
Based on the expenditure for the 1999-2000 fuel season, the cost of extending the fuel season by one week would be approximately £1.7 million or £44 million to extend it for the full year. As such an extension to the duration of the scheme would have significant cost implications, this could only be considered in a budgetary context, taking increases in primary weekly payment rates into account. The Deputy will note that the primary weekly payments were increased by either £4 or £7 per week in the most recent budget. I have no plans at this time to extend the fuel season for the full year.