In the wake of the British electricity and gas industry regulator Ofgem announcing that the energy price cap would rise by a shocking 80 per cent to £3,549 from 1 October 2022, local councils have begun planning how to use public buildings to keep people warm this winter.
The hike raises the maximum amount utility companies can charge their customers from the present £1,971 and is expected to climb further in subsequent quarters as global gas prices surge, in no small part due to Russia’s war in Ukraine, the consequences of which are feeding into a broader cost of living crisis with inflation at a 40-year high of 10.1 per cent and wages stagnating.
