GRIM weather.

While it’s depressing for everyone, it’s a lot more worrying for some than others.

For those living in fuel poverty, cold weather can be a terrifying prospect.

It’s not just an extra jumper when you brave it to the shops – it’s living in fear that you or your kids could freeze at night.

Last week saw the National Fuel Poverty Awareness Day. It reminded us of some shocking facts.

A total of 4million people households are living in fuel poverty. And last year, 44,000 people died due to the cold home crisis. This doesn’t even cover all the people who fall ill from having to live in the cold.

This could get worse – National Energy Action estimates that in the next 15 years, there will be about 125,000 premature deaths due to cold homes.

In Hyndburn, 5,115 homes are in fuel poverty, that’s 13 per cent of households. This is made all the more worrying because of our high elderly population, who are more vulnerable to the cold and damp.

There continues to be a real lack of central heating and the terraced stock makes it hard to insulate and provide energy efficiencies.

This means people living in poor quality housing have to shell out more than those living in more expensive accommodation for gas and electric.

Indeed, fuel poor households in the North West have to pay about £350 more than more affluent homes to stay warm.

The council has installed energy efficiency measures to tackle the crisis.

But there is, unfortunately, no quick fix. What’s needed is a massive overhaul of housing standards and proper regulation of the energy companies.

The Government talks about house-building but what about fixing up the homes we have to make sure they’re properly insulated?

It applauds Help To Buy but what about giving a hand to young people who have to rent from private landlords?

It promises to support left-behind communities but what about helping out older people, stuck in poor quality housing in low-demand areas, who are faced with Npower’s 10% increase in gas and electric charges?

Greater investment in insulation and tougher regulation of the energy market makes economic sense too.

The cold home crisis costs the NHS about £1.3billion a year and saps money for our local economy. Why not use this money to tackle damp and poor insulation in substandard housing stock?

By ending the cold homes crisis, the Government could save people’s lives and could save the NHS of much-needed funding. It’s a no-brainer.