Governments have duty to protect us

THE current energy crisis fuelled by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February has seen the price of gas and oil soar across the world.

But the degree to which governments have chosen to intervene to protect their citizens from this crisis is both stark in contrast and telling in action.

In April, the regulator Ofgem approved a cap of 54% on UK energy bills – essentially meaning that energy prices for UK households would increase by 54%. This action would plunge families across the UK into poverty and those already in poverty into despair.

People protested and complained but we assumed that this was the global consequence of the war in Ukraine – that UK households were not alone in facing such hardship.

Then we were told that our energy bills were set to rise again in October but this time by a staggering 78%, taking the price of our annual energy bills to £2,879. In the space of six short months households will have experienced a 128% increase in their energy bills.

I’ve always assumed that a “price cap” was something that was put in place by governments to protect us. Various definitions support this assumption.

In broad terms, it’s an upper limit or safety net set by the government or regulator on how much a company can charge the consumer for a product or service.

The 128% increase in our energy bills, approved by the UK Government, seems more like dangling on the edge of a perilous precipice than a safety net there to protect us.

Contrast this to the French government which clearly has a greater understanding of the meaning of a price cap and the government’s moral obligation to protect its citizens. Energy prices for French households have been capped at 4%.

Governments have a choice, to protect or not to protect their people. The UK Government chose the latter. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Hywel Thomas

Canton, Cardiff