Coldest winter ahead for many

Oct 21 2009 by Jackie Grant, Dumfries Standard Wednesday

Coldest winter ahead for many

THE STANDARD revealed last week that the number of winter deaths in Dumfries and Galloway has hit an all-time high.

That situation could get even worse this winter unless action is taken.

We asked the people on the street what they think about the fact that many elderly people sit in cold houses because they can’t afford to turn their heating on.

Mara McLaughlin, Dumfries — For a civilised country it’s unbelievable that people are dying because they can’t afford to keep themselves warm and have to depend on charity in a lot of cases. Luckily, I have a good pension and I get the government fuel allowance, but it really is a huge problem and I feel so sorry for people who aren’t as fortunate as me.

Carol Peat, Dumfries — I am surrounded by pensioners who can’t cope with winter heating bills and I know a lot of people who live in one room of their home because they can’t afford to heat other rooms. I try and look out for my elderly neighbours and do their shopping for them at times, but some aren’t as lucky and have no-one to make sure they are all right. But it’s not only pensioners who are affected. I suffer from ill health and have to keep warm in my home, but it costs about £60 a fortnight because I have storage heaters. It really is a worrying situation.

Joseph Hall, Dumfries, (pictured above) — My wife and I get a fuel allowance but I would really like to see electricity prices go down. With other bills to pay on top of heating, I can understand how a lot of pensioners sometimes have to make the choice between eating and heating. It makes me really angry that MPs seem to live in cloud cuckoo land and expect us to be able to afford everything. They should try living on the state pension for a while instead of living off of us. If the average working person tried to get away with what they do, we’d be locked up.

Laura Howie, Dumfries — I’m only 16 so I don’t have to worry about heating bills, but I would worry about my elderly relatives if they were struggling to heat their homes. It’s really sad that so many old people are dying because they can’t afford electricity bills and I think the government has a responsibility to do something about it.

Callum Kirkpatrick, Dumfries — Because I’m only 15 I haven’t really thought how the price of electricity affects my grandparents but if I thought they were worried, it would concern me. I think there should be more responsibility put on people to check up on elderly relatives and make sure they are okay.