Nearly a quarter of UK adults plan to keep heating off this winter, poll finds

theguardian.com:

Skyrocketing energy prices mean almost one in four adults in the UK will not switch on the heating at all this winter, according to a poll, with opposition MPs describing the findings as a “national scandal”.

The survey of more than 2,000 UK adults found 23% would do without heating over the winter months. That figure was even higher for parents with children under the age of 18, with 27% saying they would be forced to leave the radiators cold.

About 70% said they would turn their heating on less, while 11% said they were considering taking out a loan to cover extra costs. That figure rose to 17% for those with children.

The poll was conducted before the regulator Ofgem announced the energy price cap would increase by 80% from October. The decision will take the average gas and electricity bill from £1,971 to £3,549 a year.

The Liberal Democrats, who commissioned the survey, called for further commitments by the incoming Tory prime minister, widely expected to be Liz Truss, to help struggling households.

“Families and pensioners across the country are making heartbreaking decisions because the government has failed to save them,” said the Lib Dem spokesperson for the Cabinet Office, Christine Jardine.

“It is a national scandal that parents are having to choose between heating their homes and feeding their children,” she said. “It shouldn’t be like this. Britain is on the brink of the worst cost of living crisis in a century and yet still Liz Truss and [rival leadership candidate] Rishi Sunak will not scrap the energy price rise.”

The Lib Dems are calling for a further windfall tax on oil and gas companies to partly fund a price cap freeze.

Labour has also put pressure on the Tory leadership candidates, calling for the existing