Unite Protest at Ofgem in Glasgow
Unite holding nationwide day of action over energy bill hikes
Unite Community members will be going to 40 locations across the UK on April 1 as part of a nationwide campaign of action, with further protests planned over the following two weeks.
The day of action coincides with the date the latest energy price cap rise comes into effect, which will see a rise of 6.4 per cent from £1,738 to £1,849 for an average dual-fuel household.
The day of action is part of the Unite Energy 4 All campaign, which has been running since 2023 and calls for the eradication of fuel poverty, and the national control of our energy resources.
Unite Community and Unite Retired Members Branches are joining with other fuel poverty and pensioner groups to draw attention to the shameful fact that in the sixth richest economy 8 million people struggle to pay their energy bills and on average 7000 people die each year because they are unable to keep warm in their own homes.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "It's time to end the chaos in our energy network, which allows profiteers to flourish while workers and communities are left in the cold.
"No one should ever have to choose between heating and eating. We believe it is time for public ownership and for fuel poverty to be consigned to the dustbin of history.”
Unite believe energy regulator Ofgem has totally failed to regulate our nation's energy market. The latest 6.4 per cent rise adds £111 to the energy price cap, a cap that climbs ever higher while Unite members struggle with ever increasing energy costs.
Simon Coop, Unite’s National Officer for Energy & Utilities said: “Unite is unique as a Trade Union in organising in the workplace and the community, and our Industrial members in the Energy sector are right behind Unite Community’s day of action.
“OFGEM have failed to protect consumers. For too long they have sided with the profiteering energy companies over the most vulnerable in our country and we stand in full support of the campaign against fuel poverty and for public ownership of our energy sector.”
Unite is also running the Defend the Winter Fuel Allowance campaign, which demands that the Labour government reinstates the Winter Fuel Payment and is calling for the introduction of a wealth tax to pay for it.
Unite holding nationwide day of action over energy bill hikes
Unite Community members will be going to 40 locations across the UK on April 1 as part of a nationwide campaign of action, with further protests planned over the following two weeks.
The day of action coincides with the date the latest energy price cap rise comes into effect, which will see a rise of 6.4 per cent from £1,738 to £1,849 for an average dual-fuel household.
The day of action is part of the Unite Energy 4 All campaign, which has been running since 2023 and calls for the eradication of fuel poverty, and the national control of our energy resources.
Unite Community and Unite Retired Members Branches are joining with other fuel poverty and pensioner groups to draw attention to the shameful fact that in the sixth richest economy 8 million people struggle to pay their energy bills and on average 7000 people die each year because they are unable to keep warm in their own homes.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "It's time to end the chaos in our energy network, which allows profiteers to flourish while workers and communities are left in the cold.
"No one should ever have to choose between heating and eating. We believe it is time for public ownership and for fuel poverty to be consigned to the dustbin of history.”
Unite believe energy regulator Ofgem has totally failed to regulate our nation's energy market. The latest 6.4 per cent rise adds £111 to the energy price cap, a cap that climbs ever higher while Unite members struggle with ever increasing energy costs.
Simon Coop, Unite’s National Officer for Energy & Utilities said: “Unite is unique as a Trade Union in organising in the workplace and the community, and our Industrial members in the Energy sector are right behind Unite Community’s day of action.
“OFGEM have failed to protect consumers. For too long they have sided with the profiteering energy companies over the most vulnerable in our country and we stand in full support of the campaign against fuel poverty and for public ownership of our energy sector.”
Unite is also running the Defend the Winter Fuel Allowance campaign, which demands that the Labour government reinstates the Winter Fuel Payment and is calling for the introduction of a wealth tax to pay for it.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Don't put up our bills today.
00:02That's derection, make them pay.
00:04Ofgem, come off it.
00:06United for the profit.
00:08We need profits.
00:09Not people.
00:10I'm Keith Soder, I'm Chair of Unite Community Branch, West of Scotland.
00:14The reason we're here outside Ofgem is because, I think most people know, the fuel bill's got up today, 6.4.
00:22And we're here because in Ofgem's charter it says that it's supposed to be looking after consumers' interests.
00:28This is our third rise in less than three years.
00:32Wages haven't gone up, pensions haven't gone up, disability benefits, unemployment benefit, universal credit.
00:39None of those have gone up to the rate of 6.4.
00:42So we're here to remind Ofgem of their responsibilities.
00:45But the other thing is, it's a particularly April cool day rather than an April fool day today.
00:51Because on the way into town today I had to pay an extra 50 pence on the train to get in here.
00:56We have got council tax going up.
00:59In some councils it's over 10%, it's in double figures.
01:02We've got the utility bills going up.
01:05We've got a food inflation cost of eating.
01:09Never mind heating.
01:10It's getting more difficult every time we go as shops are getting more and more expensive.
01:15And just people are fed up with it.
01:17And we're here to say, this is ridiculous.
01:20And we've also come up with an answer which is, be like France where the public energy is mostly publicly owned.
01:27And they took a decision, we're not putting up the prices.
01:30The state will take the hit.
01:32Here, the utility companies are raking in the profits.
01:36Their shareholders are getting up dividends and higher dividends than they've had for a long time.
01:42And they're really happy.
01:43But the people who are suffering at the bottom are really struggling.
01:46And I think here in Scotland we're especially suffering.
01:49We have a higher proportion of people who are in prepayment meters.
01:53Which means they're paying the highest possible charges for electricity and gas.
01:59And in addition to that, they live in a colder part of the country than say the south west of England.
02:05So we're just getting hammered always.
02:07And we need to try and do something about it.
02:09Tax the rich and make them pay.