Nesbitt frustrated at quality of Executive Ministers answers
Jan 24, 2012
Ulster Unionist MLA, Mike Nesbitt, has expressed his utter frustration with the quality of answers at NI Question Time for Executive Ministers. The member for Strangford was speaking after Social Development Minister, Nelson McCausland, totally ignored the point of his question about the pilot Pay As You Go scheme for home heating oil.
"I accept this is a potentially important development, Around 70% of our homes rely on oil for heating, and too many of our most vulnerable citizens, who are in deep fuel poverty, can only afford the small drums of oil available at retail outlets like fuel stations, which are very expensive on a cost per litre basis.
"All I asked was who owns the oil in a domestic tank equipped with Pay As You Go technology, and specifically who bears the risk in the event of theft, the supplier or consumer, Mr McCausland managed to inform me there would be anti-tampering devises fitted to tanks participating in the pilot scheme, but abjectly failed to address the key issue of who pays if someone siphons off £550 worth of oil from a domestic tank. If the answer is the consumer, that is no way to tackle fuel poverty.
"Frankly, as a new MLA, I am appalled at the number of times Ministers totally ignore questions and supplementaries. It is approaching a waste of time and abuse of democracy."
