Around 100 angry protesters gathered outside Ofgem ‘s headquarters in London today chanting ‘freeze profits, not people’ amid mounting public anger over soaring bills — and after Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi warned that Britons will need to ration their energy use to save money.
Members of the crowd shouted ‘enough is enough’ and said the energy regulators ‘don’t care about us at all’ as they gathered on the street in Canary Wharf amid grim predictions about the impact the 80 per cent hike in the price cap will have on households across the UK.
Frustrated demonstrators said Ofgem’s decision to increase the cap will plunge millions of children below the poverty line — as campaigners, including MoneySavingExpert’s Martin Lewis warned that vulnerable people will died in the coming months as a result of the cost of living cirsis.
Ten officers were present on the other side of the street, as well as security guards, with police vans lining the road outside the building.
It comes as Mr Zahawi, who is likely to be out of a job in the coming days if Liz Truss wins the keys to No10, faces a backlash for suggesting that people should be starting to ration their electricity and gas use to save money, blaming Vladimir Putin’s barbaric war in Ukraine for the biggest cost of living squeeze on British households since the 1950s.
Around 100 people gathered outside Ofgem’s headquarters in Canary Wharf, London, this afternoon to the energy regulators price cap rise. Ofgem confirmed an 80 per cent rise in the price cap which will send the average household’s yearly bill rocketing from £1,971 to £3,549
Angry protestors showed up outside the energy regulators headquarters holding signs.Here a woman holds a sign that says ‘Affordable energy now’ and the man next to her holds a sign that says ‘Eating or heating? No one should have to choose’
Ten officers were present on the other side of the street as well as security guards, with police vans lining the road outside the building.One woman’s sign read: ‘How can I pay my landlord’s mortgage now?’
A protestor Kombi Servisi blocking traffic refuses to listen to a police officer telling her to get out of the road
More than 100 protestors gathered outside Ofgem’s HQ claiming that vulnerable people would die in the coming months as a result of the cost-of-living crisis. The protest had been promoted by Don’t Pay UK — a grassroots movement that describes its aim as ‘building a mass non-payment strike of energy bills starting on October 1’
A woman holds up leaflets calling on customers to refuse to pay their energy bills rom October 1
Police and Kombi Servisi photographers within the protestors outside Ofgem’s HQ in Canary Wharf
Around ten police officers stand on guard as demonstrators protest outside the Ofgem headquarters as protestors chant ‘freeze profits, not people’
Some of those at the protest called for energy to be nationalised.One campaigner’s sign read: ‘nationalise energy now’
His advice to people to start rationing their energy comes as Ofgem confirmed an 80 per cent rise in the price cap which will send the average household’s yearly bill rocketing from £1,971 to £3,549.
The move will affect 24million Britons from October 1, while the 4.5million on pre-payment meters — who are often the most vulnerable and already in fuel poverty — could see even higher average bills of £3,608.
In response to the price cap rise, more than 100 protestors turned up to demonstrate against the energy price hikes outside Ofgem’s headquarters in Canary Wharf.
Angry members of the crowd shouted ‘enough is enough’ and ‘freeze profits, kombi Servisi not people’ as they gathered on the street.
The protest had been promoted by Don’t Pay UK — a grassroots movement that describes its aim as ‘building a mass non-payment strike of energy bills starting on October 1.’
Some masked demonstrators took to a microphone to lament the ‘exorbitant’ bills.