In the midst of a crisis, the British hope for aid to reduce energy bills

2022-03-22T19:24:24.328Z

In the United Kingdom, the Minister of the Economy is due to present his spring budget this Wednesday, March 23. Usually the opportunity to correct spending in the middle of the budget year, the British…

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In the midst of a crisis, the British hope for aid to reduce energy bills

Audio 01:12

Aerial view of the small town of Luton, Great Britain.

The sharp rise in energy prices in the United Kingdom is plunging many families into precariousness.

Text by: RFI Follow

1 min

In the United Kingdom, the Minister of the Economy is due to present his spring budget this Wednesday, March 23.

Usually given the opportunity to correct spending midway through the budget year, the British are hoping for measures, in particular to reduce the price of energy, while the United Kingdom is mired in a crisis of the cost of the life.

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With our correspondent in London,

Émeline Vin

A mother of two teenage girls, Zahia depends on a food bank for her family's meals.

But for electricity, this stay-at-home mom has to be careful of everything.

“

We only turn on the heating for a few hours a day, when the girls come home from school.
We try not to cook every day, to save gas... We have to control everything

,” she explains.

Most Britons pay their energy bill by monthly direct debit, but the less fortunate are forced to resort to prepayment, a less unpredictable system, but more expensive in the long term.

Billy McGranahan, founder of the food bank Dad's House, had to resolve since October to also help with energy bills.

►

To read also:
Soaring energy prices: London announces 9 billion pounds of household aid

“

We help between 6 and 15 families a week.
Every day we see families who cannot afford to turn on the heating, or even to cook the food we give them.
So we put money on their meter, between 100 and 250 pounds depending on the number of children

,” he explains.

The crisis, he sees, affects everyone: in three months, donations to the Dad's House food bank have been divided by three.

He hopes for a gesture from the government in the spring budget.

►

To read also:
United Kingdom: soaring prices weaken low-income workers a little more

In the midst of a crisis, the British hope for aid to reduce energy bills

In the midst of a crisis, the British hope for aid to reduce energy bills

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