Ofgem warned of poverty impact from energy price cap increase

Scotland’s Children’s Commissioner has challenged Ofgem over the decision to raise the energy price cap, warning more families will be pushed into poverty this winter.

Bruce Adamson expressed his grave concerns in a letter to the energy regulator’s chief executive, Jonathan Brearley.

He highlighted particular concerns about the impact of the decision for families with disabled children, with some relying on life-saving electrical equipment.

Mr Adamson said the experience of poverty can “severely affect a child’s development”, while having a negative impact on mental and physical health, education, family relationships, aspirations and life chances.

“Children have told us that they feel poverty robs them of their childhood, but this is not inevitable,” he wrote.

“Poverty is a political choice; a consequence of decisions made by the UK and Scottish governments. Regulators and others who hold economic levers can choose to either mitigate or contribute to poverty.”

He has enquired as to how Ofgem intends on using its powers to protect children and young people from the potential impact of a cap increase, warning more will face severe poverty as a result.

Mr Adamson said: “It is beyond dispute that unfettered and unmitigated energy price rises risk pushing more children into poverty, and those children already in poverty into destitution.

“The short and long-term consequences to individuals and to society will be devastating.”

The Commissioner has also asked Ofgem to demonstrate how it has considered the impact of another price cap rise, particularly on vulnerable groups of children and young people.

It comes after legal campaigners at the Good Law Project issued a notice of court action should the regulator fail to comply with its duty to protect vulnerable customers.

Impact assessments are expected to be conducted when decisions are made on regulatory functions, considering the needs of disabled or chronically sick people, those on low incomes, people living in rural areas, and pensioners, in particular.

However, Mr Adamson stated in his letter: “It is clear that many children and young people in Scotland will fall directly within the first three of those categories and that a significant number of individuals in all four categories will have child dependents.”

The letter also highlighted the fact that Scotland has a disproportionate number of households with no access to mains gas, particularly in rural and island areas.

Costs for those households are not fully protected by the price cap, with increased costs being in excess of the cap in some cases.