Mary Glindon MP said in Parliament that 30% of North Tynesiders are in fuel poverty.
Ms Glindon says this figure was misheard, and Hansard has now been updated. Statistics from the charity National Energy Action actually show that 13% of North Tynesiders are in fuel poverty.
Hansard, the “substantially verbatim” record of what is said in Parliament, has been updated after Full Fact pointed out that it had recorded a Labour MP as using an inaccurate statistic about fuel poverty during Prime Minister’s Questions this week.
Hansard initially said that the MP for North Tyneside, Mary Glindon, claimed during Prime Minister’s Questions this week that “National Energy Action says 30% of North Tynesiders are in fuel poverty”.
When Full Fact queried this with fuel poverty charity National Energy Action, it told us that 13% was the correct statistic (based on the government’s ‘Low Income Low Energy Efficiency’ definition of fuel poverty in England).
When we asked Ms Glindon what figure she used in Parliament, she told us she said 13%, not 30%, and this appears to be the case from video footage of her speaking, though the audio is indistinct. Ms Glindon confirmed she would write to Hansard for the record to be updated.
While it is not currently possible for MPs who aren't ministers to make official corrections to Hansard, “obvious mistakes” can be removed, which seems to be what has happened in this case.
Following a successful Full Fact campaign, in October 2023 MPs voted to change the corrections system in Parliament to allow all MPs to correct the official record. Full Fact is urging that the new way for MPs to correct the official record be implemented expeditiously and effectively.
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