Warm This Winter Press Release 3rd November 2022

PUBLIC DEMAND MORE ACTION FROM THE UK AND WELSH GOVERNMENTS ON ENERGY CRISIS

Even considering the Energy Price Guarantee and the Energy Bills Support Scheme pledged by the UK Government, 64% of the population of Wales believe they will struggle to pay their bills this winter.

And the situation will get worse according to a new snapshot poll by Omnisis on behalf of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition. In Wales, almost everyone (91%) is very or quite worried about the prospect of bills going up further in April 2023 when the current Government support programmes run out.

Over 60 charities, co-ordinated by the Warm This Winter campaign, have joined forces to write to the new Prime Minister demanding more financial and non-financial support for the 7m UK households currently in fuel poverty. [2]

The letter goes on to call for the upweighting of benefits and urgent clarification of energy bills support available from April 2023, a massive programme of energy efficiency measures and the speeding up of moves to cheaper renewable energy. [3]

The campaigners are supported by the new research which shows 62% of the population think the Government is not doing enough to support vulnerable households this winter.

Bethan Sayed, Campaign Co-ordinator for Climate Cymru said:

‘We recognise that the Welsh Government has put measures in place to seek to mitigate against the worst of the cost of living crisis, such as the £150 cost of living payment, a National Fuel Voucher scheme, and a new ‘warm banks’ fund, but we must recognise that the cost of living, energy and climate crises are interlinked, and we must work to invest in long terms solutions to change people’s lives in Wales. From investing in an ambitious energy efficiency programme, and scaling up renewable energy projects in local areas, so people can directly benefit from the energy they create in their communities. That’s when we will see the progress we need.’ 

Joe Cole, Chief Executive of Advice for Renters, is one of the signatories of the letter and commented: 

“One of our clients who suffers from PTSD was pushed close to suicide when he couldn’t top up his pre-payment meter. Thankfully, help was on hand and he has now been put back in credit, but he remains traumatised and his experience is proof of just how damaging life in fuel poverty can be on mental and physical health.”

Tessa Khan, director of Uplift, said: 

“While our politicians have spent months fighting among themselves, the public has been watching this crisis bearing down on us.  

“It now demands urgent government action, which means more support for those who need it this winter, and the wholesale replacement of Truss’ implausible and wrong-headed plans for taxpayer-subsidised gas production with a government-backed programme to insulate homes and an acceleration of cheaper renewables. Pragmatism not ideology must be what drives this government’s decisions.”

ENDS

[1] Omnisis surveyed 1,382 people on 21 October 2022. Results were weighted to be reflective of the GB population. Omnisis is a member of the British Polling Council. Sample size in Wales was 62. Full results can be downloaded from the following link: https://www.omnisis.co.uk/poll-results/VI-5-results-20-10-2022-energy

[2] https://www.endfuelpoverty.org.uk/price-cap-methodology/

[3] Letter will be published on https://www.warmthiswinter.org.uk/