The people of Swindon have backed a petition calling on David Cameron to freeze energy prices after Anne Snelgrove and a group of supporters took to the town centre. Anne, Labour’s Parliamentary Candidate for South Swindon, and her team of volunteers collected 250 signatures in the space of just a few hours in Swindon town centre.
The people of Swindon have backed a petition calling on David Cameron to freeze energy prices after Anne Snelgrove and a group of supporters took to the town centre.
Anne, Labour’s Parliamentary Candidate for South Swindon, and her team of volunteers collected 250 signatures in the space of just a few hours in Swindon town centre.
The petition calls on the government to freeze gas and electricity prices now.
Anne said: “We have been talking to families because they are the ones who are most likely to feel the squeeze between heating and eating this year.
“Wages in Swindon have dropped on average by £50 a week, yet gas and electricity bills are going up by 10 per cent. Hard working families are struggling to cope and only Labour is promising action on the out of control energy companies.”
So many people were keen to sign the petition that Anne is planning to be out again, gathering more signatures in Cavendish Square, Park North at 2.30 pm on Friday 25 October.
Support for the petition comes as Labour leader Ed Miliband has pledged a 20-month energy price freeze.
Three of Britain’s big six energy firms – Npower, SSE, and British Gas – have announced plans to raise gas and electricity bills by between 8 per cent and 10 per cent. The others – Scottish Power, E.On and EDF – are expected to follow suit with similar price increases.
Cameron is also under fire after former Conservative Prime Minister John Major called for a windfall tax on the excess profits of the big six energy companies.
Anne added: “I spoke to one mum from West Swindon who is on an electricity meter and can’t swap providers – it’s not possible for her to do so. So she is faced with a bill 10 per cent higher this winter, plus a premium on top for having a meter.
“I also spoke to pensioners who see the value of their winter fuel allowance dropping, yet they are reliant on heating to get them through the winter.
“So many people I spoke to were annoyed by the Prime Minister’s advice to put an extra jumper on. Lots of them told me that last year they had to switch off their heating during one of the coldest winters in living memory. There are lots of frightened people in Swindon who fear they will have to do the same again this year because they simply cannot keep up with the extortionate electricity and gas prices.”
