Government to ask Britons to 'turn off lights and lower thermostats' over winter energy shortage fears

The government could ask Britons to turn off their lights and lower their thermostats to avoid power outages during the winter months, reports say.
This comes as European Union countries have been told to cut their gas consumption by 15% from August over fears of winter power shortages after Russia cut supplies to the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline.
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France, Germany and Austria are among countries urging people to minimize their energy use using proposals similar to those reportedly currently under consideration by the UK government.
Plans seen by The Sunday Telegraph reveal the government could ask the public to cut back on long showers, lighting and heating via radio, TV, posters and leaflets.
The document also presents a potential agreement which would see the national grid pay its industrial users to switch off in order to avoid power outages elsewhere.
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The National Grid has also asked its electricity suppliers to pay their customers to switch their energy consumption to peak periods this winter. But British Gas and Shell told the newspaper they have yet to put such plans in place.
The Telegraph reports that ministers are "reluctant" to ask households to reduce their energy consumption, and hopefully the exorbitant costs will naturally dampen demand.
It comes ahead of the publication of the National Grid winter outlook report next week.
As of 1 April, households currently on a standard variable tariff saw their bills rise sharply by 54% to £1,971. For around 4 million customers using prepaid meters, there was an increase of £708 from £1,309 to £2,017.
And it could rise again sharply in October, the cap to increase again. Cornwall Insights estimates annual energy bills could soar to £3,244, rising to £3,363 from January.
The Office for National Statistics said last month that more nine in 10 people had seen their cost of living increase in the previous weeks, with the number of people cutting back on their diet rising sharply to 41%, from 8% in September.

Politics Jul 24, 2022 0 94 Add to Reading List

Government to ask Britons to 'turn off lights and lower thermostats' over winter energy shortage fears

The government could ask Britons to turn off their lights and lower their thermostats to avoid power outages during the winter months, reports say.

This comes as European Union countries have been told to cut their gas consumption by 15% from August over fears of winter power shortages after Russia cut supplies to the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline.

France, Germany and Austria are among countries urging people to minimize their energy use using proposals similar to those reportedly currently under consideration by the UK government.

Plans seen by The Sunday Telegraph reveal the government could ask the public to cut back on long showers, lighting and heating via radio, TV, posters and leaflets.

The document also presents a potential agreement which would see the national grid pay its industrial users to switch off in order to avoid power outages elsewhere.

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The National Grid has also asked its electricity suppliers to pay their customers to switch their energy consumption to peak periods this winter. But British Gas and Shell told the newspaper they have yet to put such plans in place.

The Telegraph reports that ministers are "reluctant" to ask households to reduce their energy consumption, and hopefully the exorbitant costs will naturally dampen demand.

It comes ahead of the publication of the National Grid winter outlook report next week.

As of 1 April, households currently on a standard variable tariff saw their bills rise sharply by 54% to £1,971. For around 4 million customers using prepaid meters, there was an increase of £708 from £1,309 to £2,017.

And it could rise again sharply in October, the cap to increase again. Cornwall Insights estimates annual energy bills could soar to £3,244, rising to £3,363 from January.

The Office for National Statistics said last month that more nine in 10 people had seen their cost of living increase in the previous weeks, with the number of people cutting back on their diet rising sharply to 41%, from 8% in September.