Soaring energy bills will disproportionately hit people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds – as well as other vulnerable groups, a leading anti-poverty charity has warned.
As the UK’s energy regulator announces that its annual price cap will rise to £3,549 from 1 October, a report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) has found that among low-income households, 32% of Black, Asian and mixed households are already likely to be in energy arrears. Among low-income white households, the figure is 14%.
JRF measured 4,000 families between May and June, finding that 46% of low-income households overall were likely to be in arrears in at least one household bill. Of those households in arrears, 88% had gone without at least one essential – such as food, heating or adequate clothing – in the previous 30 days.
