in

UK Blackouts ‘Planned’ As Energy Crisis Worsens

Boris Johnson
Credit: Alamy

The UK is facing ‘planned blackouts’ due to power shortages, reports suggest.

According to Bloomberg, the government has drawn up ‘worst case scenario’ plans which include reducing the country’s power output by 60 per cent and four days of blackouts for homes and businesses at the beginning of 2023.

An energy consultant at Watt-Logic, Kathryn Porter, told The Telegraph: “National Grid ESO needs to urgently update its winter outlook taking account of this threat to Britain’s energy security.

Watch as Boris Johnson says the government ‘can’t help everyone’ with the cost of living crisis…

“Longer term, we need to develop more domestic generation and rely less on imports.”

Blackouts are allegedly only in the ‘worst case’ plan, but concerns about the country’s energy crisis are rising for those already fearing a particularly bleak winter, tackling a recession and cost of living struggle.

UK households are also reportedly set for another energy price cap increase this autumn.

In April, the cap jumped from £1277 to £1971, and once again it is predicted to rise in autumn, this time to £2,980.

Further to the government’s plan to deal with a potential lack of power, 75,000 people in the UK have signed up to cancel their direct debits and ignore bills from energy companies from October 1, should the current situation remain unchanged.

Recession To Hit UK As Bank Of England Hikes Interest Rates

Don’t Pay UK wrote on Twitter: “If the government and energy companies refuse to act then ordinary people will!”

Experts have said, however, this could worsen people’s situations, damaging their credit scores and racking up debt.

A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Enterprise and Industrial Strategy told The Telegraph: “Refusing to pay could put households into debt and affect personal credit ratings.

“High wholesale gas prices have led to 29 energy suppliers exiting the market since last summer.

“Encouraging people to refuse to pay bills could lead to more failures – exacerbating costs for households in the longer term.”

Watch our Video of the Day below… 

Do you have a story for us? If so, email us at [email protected]. All contact will be treated in confidence.

Written by Cal Gaunt

Cal is a former content editor at IGV who specialised in writing trending and entertainment news. He previously worked as a news reporter at the Lancashire Telegraph and earned an NCTJ in Sports Journalism.