The general election results are in: the Labour party has won a landslide victory, as the public elected a government that’s promising a fairer energy system for everyone.
Over the last few years, soaring gas prices have left the average household £2,500 worse off because of astronomical energy bills. Energy debt has reached record highs, and almost one in five households in energy debt are turning to illegal money lenders to get by. Meanwhile, millions of people are living in cold damp homes.
With bills expected to rise again in October, our new government must now take urgent action to support struggling households through the next winter, and deliver on its promises to invest in homegrown clean energy, insulate our leaky homes, and get us off expensive oil and gas to bring down bills for good.
Fiona Waters, spokesperson for the Warm This Winter campaign, said:
“The UK’s dependency on expensive gas is why our energy bills have soared and why so many people have struggled to afford to heat their homes. People have seen through some politicians’ smokescreens and misinformation about net zero.
“With only 103 days of new gas reserves left in the dwindling North Sea it’s no wonder people have rejected candidates who argued for more drilling.
“We need to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and the energy firms that have made £427bn in profits in the last few years. We need to end energy debt, protect households from the energy market, bring down bills for good, improve housing standards and make Britain a clean energy superpower.”
A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition commented:
“The new Government has said that we will see change and that they will lower energy bills, insulate homes and invest in homegrown clean energy while getting us off oil and gas.
“But Ministers inherit a broken energy system which has prioritised oil and gas company profits while millions of ordinary people have shivered in cold, damp, mouldy homes they can’t afford to heat.
“Lowering bills permanently will take time, but short term steps can be taken to help struggling and disillusioned households.
“The new Government must earn the public’s trust by protecting vulnerable households, reducing energy debt, driving more onshore wind, bringing in changes to energy meters, ramping up insulation programmes, reforming standing charges and ending energy industry profiteering.”
