Unite the union reiterates call for public ownership of energy after latest rise in price cap
Unite the union has once more reiterated its call for public ownership of energy companies after Ofgem yet again announced […]
Unite the union has once more reiterated its call for public ownership of energy companies after Ofgem yet again announced a rise in the price cap.
The energy regulator said the price cap will increase by 4% on 1 October, driven by higher wholesale gas prices due to the Iran war.
Responding to the latest increase in the energy price cap, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Today’s price cap increase is another nail in the coffin of household budgets this winter. The time for stopgap and ad hoc measures is long gone. We need a complete overhaul of the energy market based on public ownership to drive down bills and end profiteering.”
Last autumn Unite published its Energy Profiteering report which revealed that the principal reason that UK households have the most expensive energy bills in Europe, is a result of the privatised energy system and company profits. In 2024 energy companies made a total of £30 billion in profits.
The report found that the average household is paying £500 of energy bills to the privateers in company profits. Profit margins are excessive, with the average profit margin being 23 per cent, rising to an eye watering, 38 per cent, for companies involved in the grid.
Company profits (£30 billion) are a far bigger factor in household bills than green levies. Unite is calling for the renationalisation of the UK’s energy system beginning initially with the grid.
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