The vast majority of Scots are worried about the soaring costs of energy on household budgets despite SNP ministers promising measures to help.
Some 84 per cent of adults north of the border told YouGov pollsters they were concerned about the huge rise in electricity and gas prices set for April, with almost half told the Citizens Advice Scotland (Cas) survey they were very concerned.
Finance secretary Kate Forbes has been forced to defend the package of support to help with the cost of living crisis against criticism that it does not target Scots most in need.
Leading charities have blasted the Scottish Finance Secretary’s announcement to pass on the £150 Treasury discount on energy bills to all households in Scotland in council tax bands A to D.
The scheme copies emergency plans announced by Tory chancellor Rishi Sunak for homes in England.
But the distribution to three quarters of Scottish households has been described by Poverty Alliance Scotland as a “deeply disappointing” measure that does to “properly target” support for those on the lowest incomes.
Kate Morrison, fair markets spokesperson at Citizens Advice Scotland, warned that the “cost of living crisis threatens to squeeze household budgets to breaking point”.
“With energy bills set to soar, lots of us are worried about the impact that will have on household budgets, but what is especially concerning here is that even taking into account the support people will get from both the Scottish and UK governments, people are still worried about struggling,” she said.
Ofgem, the energy regulator, announced the amount customers pay per unit of energy would rise by more than 50% from April 1. The average home will see bills shoot up by £693.
Measures by the UK and Scottish governments will see bills reduced for most customers by around half, but Morrison said this did not go far enough.
“Most people will still be facing bills of around £350 a year more even if the support schemes reach everyone effectively, clearly for many that simply remains too much and as this is an average figure for some it could be much higher,” she said.
“This cost of living crisis threatens to squeeze household budgets to breaking point, and bluntly the scale of support from policymakers isn’t going to help enough.
“People were already struggling before the rise, with around half a million people in Scotland having to cut back on food to deal with unaffordable bills.”
Of the poll of 1,001 adults in Scotland, only 12 per cent of those who answered said they were not concerned about the rate rises.
Of those who answered, 49 per cent said they were very concerned and 35 said they were fairly concerned.
Households across the country are facing the highest inflation for nearly 30 years, with the Bank of England warning inflation could rocket to 7.25 per cent – the highest since August 1991.
The Consumer Prices Index records inflation at 5.5%, but it is hoped that inflation will start to fall back in the second half of 2022, though it will not be until next year that CPI gets back to the bank’s two per cent target.
And energy prices could go up again within the next six months after Ofgem handed itself new powers to make emergency changes to the price cap.
Morrison urged Scots needing help to contact Cas.
“The CAB network is here to help people. We offer free, impartial and confidential advice and can help you maximise your income,” she said.
“We unlocked £147million for people during the pandemic and in energy, people who saw a financial gain were on average £272 better off.”
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