Energy campaign group Don’t Pay UK has confirmed their planned bills strike will not take place on Friday because only a fifth of the target of one million pledges has been reached.
Around 192,000 people have so far signed up to the mass non-payment campaign, which was launched in June in response to soaring bills. The plan was for everyone to cancel their energy bill direct debits on October 1, when the price cap rises. At the time the group was formed, the cap for an average household was expected to hit £3,500, but this has since been capped at £2,500 for the next two years after the Government intervened.
It is not clear if people who have signed up have been made aware they should not cancel their direct debits on October 1, and much of the campaign literature on the campaign's website still prominently states October 1. A statement says: "We’ve now proven the strength of the Don’t Pay campaign. After 180,000 of us pledged to strike, the Government was forced to reduce the catastrophic energy price hike scheduled for October 1. The threat of all of us saying we won’t pay left the Government with no other option."
