‘It’s a national scandal’: Ed Miliband calls for temporary ban on forced prepayment meters
14 January 2023, 11:58
Ed Miliband: Forced prepayment meters are a 'national scandal'
“The notion that the poorest and most vulnerable should pay more for their energy seems absolutely backwards” said Ed Miliband, as energy companies have started switching people over from smart meters to prepayment meters.
The Labour Party is calling for an immediate and temporary moratorium on the forced installation of prepayment meters.
Andrew Castle said: “It's unbelievable that these energy companies can actually turn a smart meter which is supposed to help people into one of these prepayment meters which is more expensive! That doesn't seem very fair.'
Ed Miliband, Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero replied: “It’s a national scandal Andrew. What we've got is people essentially being cut off by the back door.”
He said it was leaving people in a position where “they can’t afford to top up, so they lose power and heat”.
“It’s more expensive. There are supposed to be protections in place for the vulnerable, but those protections don't seem to be happening”, he added.
The Labour MP continued: “What we’re calling for is a temporary ban…so that we can fix the issue of the premium that people are paying and get proper help for the vulnerable…it’s a real mess.”
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Andrew asked if the Member for Doncaster North believed Energy UK, which represents the energy companies, when they say this is the “last resort”.
He said he did not believe that to be the case as he knows of companies installing “thousands” of them compared to another installing around one hundred.
“What is our responsibility as a society to people, frankly?” he asked.
Andrew then played “devil’s advocate”, saying companies may have felt the need to do this because as a commercial organisation, they need the money to keep operating.
“The notion that the poorest and most vulnerable should pay more for their energy seems absolutely backwards”, Mr Miliband replied, suggesting a “proper windfall tax could cover the extra cost of the prepayment meter premium”.
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“You’ve got to look at the circumstances of the people you’re transferring across”, he added.
The Labour MP also reasserted that he was not calling for a permanent ban of them as some people find the meters helpful for “budgeting”, but did feel that it was a “back door” way to deal with their own problems.
He also agreed with Andrew’s suggestion that the lowest possible tariffs could protect both the companies and the users, saying there is a “rocketing number” of them.
