End energy profiteering: The rich get richer, the poor get colder

Big Six suppliers heading for bum per profit s and bonuses as m ore t han 5.5 m illion UK hom es hit by fuel povert y Sim on Read Friday, 10 February 2012 More t han 5.5 m illion households are suffering under fuel povert y, m any being forced t o choose bet ween heat ing or eat ing. Click HERE t o view 'Fair energy? r ising profit s, rising povert y' graphic Meanwhile t he Big Six energy suppliers increased t heir profit m argins by 733 per cent in j ust t hree m ont hs last year. Enough is enough. Today The I ndependent support s a cam paign to force energy com panies t o share t heir profit s wit h t he needy. The aim is sim ple: t o m ake essent ial hom e energy affordable t o all. An est im at ed 3,000 winter deat hs are caused every year by fuel povert y and as the wint er chill really begins t o hit hom e, wit h m ore snow and icy weat her forecast for the next few days, it could be t he worst t im e for t he vulnerable, part icularly t he elderly. Research by Age UK last m ont h found t hat two m illion elderly people are so cold t hat t hey go t o bed when t hey're not t ired in an at t em pt to keep energy bills down. More t han t wofift hs of people surveyed adm it t ed t o t urning t heir heat ing down even when cold. Average household bills have doubled in t he past six years from around 600 a year in 2006 t o m ore than 1,200 a year now. The increases have m ore people t han ever slipping int o fuel povert y when t heir gas and elect ricit y cost s account for at least a t ent h of t heir incom e. According t o research from uSwit ch, 1,500 a year on energy is the t ipping point at which three- quarters of households will st art rat ioning t heir energy, t hree- fift hs will go wit hout adequate heat ing and m ore t han a t hird will be forced t o t urn t heir heat ing off ent irely. That figure looks like edging ever closer as furt her energy increases seem highly likely, especially aft er wholesale gas prices reached a six- year high earlier t his week. Meanwhile, in Oct ober t he regulat or Ofgem revealed t hat energy suppliers had increased t heir profit m argins by a whopping 733 per cent , from 15 t o 125 per household. The cam paign End The Big Six Energy Fix is being co- ordinat ed by pressure group Com pass and has already at t ract ed cross- part y support from polit icians as well as econom ist s, civil society leaders, charit ies, religious leaders, celebrit ies and cam paigners. The 100 leading figures are t oday urging t he Governm ent to t ackle t he predatory behaviour of big energy com panies by int roducing a new levy on t heir profit s. They set out t heir t hree dem ands in a lett er published in t oday's I ndependent signed by a range of figures including t he Green Part y leader Caroline Lucas, t he form er Hom e Secretary David Blunket t and t he Tory parliam ent ary privat e secret ary Mark Lancast er. The m ain aim is t o int roduce a windfall t ax on energy com panies' profit s and t o use the m oney raised t o m ake hom es energy efficient , which would also reduce fuel povert y. The funds raised should be ring- fenced t o help people wit h t heir energy costs, part icularly t hose living in fuel povert y. The cam paign is launched ahead of t he profit announcem ent s of t he big energy com panies lat er t his m ont h. I n t he first six m ont hs of 2011 alone t he Big Six energy com panies posted profit s of around 3.5bn.

Caroline Lucas, leader of t he Green Part y, said: "I t is com pletely out rageous t hat the Big Six are able t o rake in eye- wat ering profit s as people up and down t he count ry are forced t o choose bet ween heat ing t heir hom es and feeding their fam ilies. "These com panies are delivering a crucial public service, and it is now t he Governm ent 's responsibilit y t o hold t hem to account for failing t o provide anyt hing close to a fair deal for consum ers. We need t o see Ofgem t aking a far st ronger role in regulat ing t his out - ofcont rol indust ry." Andy At kins, execut ive direct or of Friends of t he Eart h, said: " I t's scandalous t hat the m aj or energy firm s are net t ing billions of pounds in profit while m ore t han five m illion households in Brit ain struggle to heat t heir hom es." Gavin Hayes, general secret ary of Com pass, said: "I f t he Governm ent can im pose a levy on t he big oil com panies, t hen why not im pose a sim ilar levy on big energy com panies?" Cam paigners are encouraging people to sign a new pet it ion at www.endt hebigsixenergyfix.org.uk. They hope t hat public support will pile pressure on t he Chancellor t o announce plans for a levy in March's Budget . From t oday t he cam paign will be t arget ing m illions of people across Brit ain through Twit t er and Facebook. Case st udy: 'I t 's a case of sit t ing back and hoping t he bills aren't t oo high' Owen Ellis, 77, finds paying for heat ing his hom e a real st ruggle, especially since the Coalit ion Governm ent cut back t he annual winter fuel paym ent t his year by 50 "My m ont hly incom e is about 400 so I can't afford t o keep t he heat ing on all t he t im e," said t he form er local council worker, who has been living alone in east London since his wife died t hree years ago. "But I 'm one of t he lucky ones as t he flat I rent is new and well insulat ed, so if I blast the heat ing for a couple of hours, it keeps t he flat warm for a few hours longer." He st icks 7 away every fort night t o pay for his quarterly heat ing bills. "I t 's a case of sit ting back and hoping t he bills aren't t oo high when t hey com e in," he said. "The Governm ent 's at t it ude sim ply seem s t o be t hat if t hey t ake t he m oney away from t he elderly and people die, it will be less of a financial burden on t hem ."