Bmany UK households wonder if they will be able to pay their energy bills in the future. After a 54% rise in the price cap for gas and electricity on 1er April, the British are indeed likely to suffer a 78% increase in the 1er october. Thus, the amount of the gas and electricity bill could reach on average the equivalent of 350 euros per month from this autumn.
This will reduce spending on food and other essentials. Thousands of activists have joined a civil disobedience movement to protest against soaring energy prices called ‘Don’t Pay UK’. And for them, the solution is simple: they won’t pay their energy bill, reports The Guardian.
“Bringing energy companies to the negotiating table”
Protesters from the anonymous group are expected to take to the streets. But they also plan to pressure energy suppliers and the government into ignoring their bills and canceling their direct debits. ‘Don’t Pay UK’ hopes enough people will follow suit to put energy companies in ‘serious trouble’. “We want to bring them to the negotiating table and force them to end this crisis,” he says on his website.
READ ALSOGas, inflation… Europeans are preparing for the storm
The movement, launched in June, said more than 75,000 people had so far signed up to join the strike if the government did not take drastic action. Over 21,000 people from cities like Bristol, Brighton, Manchester and London distributed over 1.6 million leaflets.
Help from the British government
The British government has already condemned the movement. “This is a highly irresponsible message that will ultimately only increase prices for everyone and affect other households,” a spokesperson for the executive said, quoted by the daily. “While no government can control global gas prices, we are providing a lot of help to households, including a reduction on energy bills, and direct help to the most vulnerable households to help them cope. at the cost of living. At the end of May, Boris Johnson’s government announced aid in the amount of a minimum of 400 pounds per household, or 476 euros, for the current year. Already at the time, the amount seemed small in view of the latest increase in energy prices and the one anticipated for October.
READ ALSOSaving gas: many exemptions in Europe
Protesters expose themselves to risks associated with non-payment, such as the possibility of having to pay additional fees. In extreme cases, suppliers could shut off power. But these possible sanctions do not undermine the will of the movement which affirms that “it will work, and [que] everyone, including the energy industry and the government, knows that”.
In France, the tariff shield put in place by the State in the autumn and extended until the end of 2022 has enabled households to limit the increase in their electricity bills to 4%. Sufficient aid, when prices could soar? Could the “Don’t Pay UK” movement be exported?