The energy crisis is just the tip of the #Tory dystopian iceberg

Well, what a day! First, we learned that energy bills are set to rise by 54% - that's about a £700 rise for the typical household to about £2000 p.a. In case you haven't guessed that's a record by the way. Then we had the government's response from Rishi Sunak, he's giving us £350 off our bills this year, £200 as a loan, and £150 off council tax which will not have to be repaid. 

I've no doubt that some will welcome this but it's a sticking plaster on a gaping wound, and what makes it worse is that it comes at a time when Shell announces a whopping profit of £19.3 billion, up from £4.8 billion. Share prices in energy companies have also risen by 70%.

The reality is that Sunak's £350 'handout' will be more than cancelled out by the rise in national insurance, and to add to the pain the Bank of England has announced an interest rate rise at a time they are predicting that inflation will rise to 7.4% by April. If you're lucky enough to have a mortgage you will see a rise which will also help to wipe out Sunak's package. Meanwhile in France the energy company has been forced to take the hit.

All of this comes at a time when the government has announced that it has written off £8.7 billion which was spent on dud PPE in the early part of the covid crisis and £4.3 billion in fraudulent covid loans. We already have over 14 million families living in poverty and this appalling situation can only get worse. 

The problem is that there is no light at the end of the tunnel. The appropriate response to the ongoing energy crisis, poverty crisis and the climate crisis needs to be a green new deal containing a massive programme of home insulation and expansion of renewables. Such a programme could create tens of thousands of meaningful and decently paid jobs which would help with the government's so-called levelling up programme which will make no difference to poorer communities. We also need to see public ownership of utilities,  proper taxation of banks, corporations, and the 1%, and a universal basic income*.

There's nothing new here. I've been saying this on my blog for over a decade but as long as we are saddled with a 'free market' neoliberal government none of this is going to happen - not unless the government's hand can be forced electorally and by protest or strike action. Tory and Labour governments are working for the banks and corporations - not for the people. We need radical change and we are going to have to fight for it if we are going to free ourselves from an even more dystopian future.

* Guy Standing has written about this and I recommend you read his book Battling Eight Giants: Basic Income Now.