OFGEM fuel cap protest to be held in Glasgow as campaigners warn of 'death for a lot of people'

The UK's energy regulator will announce its latest price cap on Friday, with the level set to rise to around £3,500 from £1,200 in April.

That cap will come into effect from October, with further rises expected in January to take bills soaring close to £4,000.

In response to the rise campaign group Power to the People will hold a protest outside the offices of OFGEM, the regulator, on Albion Street from 4pm on Friday.

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They are calling for a series of measures including a freeze on prices, an end to pre-paid meters and late fees, and the abolition of the standing charge. The group is also in favour of nationalising energy companies in the long-term.

Power to the People organiser Coll McCaill said: "Friday is the day OFGEM are set to impose a new price cap that’s going to send 72% of Scots into fuel poverty by January.

“It’s going to mean death for a lot of people who'll be choosing between heating and eating - flats across this city are going to turn into ice boxes.

“It comes on top of rocketing rents and soaring bills at the shops.

"What we should be doing is looking at capping profits in the short-term, removing pre-payment meters and assuring the overwhelmingly working class people who are on them aren’t paying exorbitant amounts for their energy, removing the late fees and things like the standing charge which even energy industry experts who are very much within these big multinational companies agree is a completely antiquated charge."

Energy prices are rising faster in the UK than in the rest of Europe, with a number of countries introducing measures to combat the inflation crisis.

Read more: What to do if you cannot afford your energy bills

France forced its state-owned energy company Electricite de France to cap price rises at 4% for this year, while ahead of the Italian election next month the Partita Democratica is proposing a national price cap and free renewable energy up to half of the average family bill.

The UK government has imposed a windfall tax on oil and gas companies and promised payments to customers, but Power to the People insist neither they nor the Scottish Government have gone far enough.

McCaill said: "If we’re throwing money at customers this winter all we’re doing is subsidising the energy companies and subsidising their profits. It’s a direct transfer of wealth from the state to private capital and just entrenches the problem.

"If you look at the windfall tax which has been imposed by the Tory government on the energy companies, there’s an 80 per cent tax relief in that windfall tax if those companies invest in domestic north sea oil and gas.

“So we’re looking at a windfall tax which although it is raising a small amount of revenue – far less than it should be – it’s actually trapping us on these toxic fossil fuels.

“So even the measures which we’re told are designed to solve the energy crisis are actually trapping us in the energy crisis.

"It’s all talk when it comes to politicians, Nicola Sturgeon for example could be doing a lot more. Although she doesn’t necessarily have the power to nationalise energy there’s a lot that could be done in Scotland around community ownership of energy at a local authority level. If she was genuinely committed to these things she’d be pushing that and she’s not.

“Politicians at all levels of government aren’t doing enough and in that instance it falls to us - so we’ll be outside of OFGEM on Friday to demand a freeze on prices rather than people.”