Our news has been dominated by huge increases in the cost of heating our homes. Even with the government’s temporary price freeze and the £400 grant offered to each household to help pay for the rising costs, fuel bills have almost doubled between October 2021 and October 2022. We are faced with even higher bills in the years to come.
When combined with the rising cost of food and clothing, and wage increases not matching the high rise in inflation, it is estimated that up to 6 million households could be living in fuel poverty this winter.
Those who are out of work or on a lower income are at a higher risk. Research suggests that people of colour, disabled people and young people will be disproportionately affected.
The government has failed to take the necessary action to protect us from the volatility of global energy prices and the United Kingdom’s reliance on climate wrecking fossil fuels.
With over 80% of UK homes now dependent on gas for heat, not only do we have a failed energy system fuelling an energy bill crisis, it continues to contribute to climate change.
The withdrawal of government funding to help people update their homes with energy saving insulation, has left UK housing amongst the leakiest in Europe. As warmth escapes through our walls, floors and ceilings, we are left with eye watering bills and more climate-wrecking emissions.
VERY RICH SOCIETY MISSPENDING ITS MONEY ON WRONG PRIORITIES
How on earth can we address the multiple crises facing the nation, let alone climate catastrophe, if we can’t even stop replacing or duplicating perfectly good buses and trains with trams and, with buses that think they are trams?
Hundreds of millions of pounds in price and in weight of GHG emissions are still being spent on Metro extensions and on Sprint, “the bus that thinks it’s a tram”.
Up to as many as 1,000 trees/shrubs are planned to be felled along the south side of Hagley Road, Birmingham to duplicate the many buses with super expensive, flash, over indulgent, wealth flaunting Metro trams and, perhaps, Sprint too (a 2010s, £12m scheme for Hagley Road is still not cancelled). Metro, definitely, has the second most expensive construction costs, of all transport modes, after the well over £200 m/Km for High Scam 2 that is the very greediest, yet totally unnecessary.
Tell me I am mistaken, in some way – please. REPLY to condemn or support!