Nearly one million Scots are planning to keep their heating off this winter due to energy bills rising by 80 per cent.
A shock new poll reveals the figure is even higher for parents with children under 18, with 27 per cent willing to go cold. It comes amid warnings that people are in for a dire winter, with a rising energy price cap pushing average yearly bills up from £1,971 to £3,549.
Critics have accused the UK Government of being missing in action, with neither Tory leadership candidate setting out in full how they would help people ahead of the contest’s conclusion.
The new Savanta ComRes survey was carried out before the new price cap was announced. Pollsters asked more than 2,000 UK adults how they would respond to increasing prices over the winter – 23% said they would not turn their heating on at all.
This works out at around one million adults north of the border. Seven in 10 (69%) said they would switch their heating on less, and one in 10 (11%) said they would take out a loan, with the latter figure rising again for those with children under 18 (17%).
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said the UK has a “zombie government” which is “nowhere to be seen” as people struggle more and more with the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.
He hit out: “I have struggled to contain my anger over the last week as we have seen Ofgem make these announcements on the new price cap and the government being a zombie government, nowhere to be seen and people in absolute despair across the country.
“Where the hell is our government? They should be out there right now cancelling this increase and making sure we are supporting families across the country.
“And they should also be giving more support to businesses who have no cap at all, meaning lots of businesses will go bust, unemployment will go up, families get pushed in destitution.”
Speaking to the BBC, he said: “This is a crisis moment and both our governments have a moral duty to act.”
Sarwar added that Nicola Sturgeon’s Scottish Government also had “powers and responsibility”, adding that Labour at Holyrood was pushing for emergency cost-of-living legislation to be brought in. This could be used to cap rail and bus fares, freeze rents and prevent evictions, Sarwar said.
Bruce Adamson, the Children and Young People’s Commissioner for Scotland, insisted “urgent action” was needed from all levels of government to avoid catastrophe. Adamson has already warned energy regulators at Ofgem that the rise in the cap will see more families “pushed into poverty and destitution with devastating consequences”.
He said: “We’re in a real crisis. It requires urgent action at all levels of government.
“Anyone who has got any level of power needs to be thinking about how they can use their powers in the most effective way and use the resources they have most effectively. We’re talking about a rights issue and in the most extreme we’re talking about the lives of children.”
The Liberal Democrats, who commissioned the poll, warned families are being forced to make “heartbreaking decisions”, with the country “on the brink of the worst cost-of living-crisis in a century.
Christine Jardine, the Lib Dem MP, said: “Families and pensioners across the country are making heartbreaking decisions because the Government has failed to save them.
“It is a national scandal that parents are having to choose between heating their homes and feeding their children. It shouldn’t be like this. Britain is on the brink of the worst cost-of-living crisis in a century and yet still Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak will not scrap the energy price rise. It is clear energy prices must not be allowed to rise in October.”
Meanwhile, an expert has warned the UK is facing the prospect of power blackouts this winter. London Energy Consulting chief executive David Cox said: “We’re going to be short of gas in Europe for this winter. That will drive prices potentially even higher.
“Not only that, we might be short of gas to the extent that we have blackouts, we don’t have enough gas to burn to make electricity, and that is a serious problem the Government are glossing over at the moment.”
A UK Government spokesperson said: “We know people are incredibly worried about rising energy bills, following unprecedented gas prices across the continent driven by global events, including (Vladimir) Putin’s aggression in Ukraine and his weaponisation of energy in Europe.
“Direct support will continue to reach people’s pockets in the weeks and months ahead, targeted at those who need it most like low-income households, pensioners and those with disabilities.
“As part of our £37 billion package of help for households, one in four of all UK households will see £1,200 extra support, provided in instalments across the year, and everyone will receive a £400 discount on their energy bills over winter.
“The Civil Service is also making the appropriate preparations in order to ensure that any additional support or commitments on cost of living can be delivered as quickly as possible when the new prime minister is in place.”
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