Britain Prepares for High Winter Heating and Electricity Costs

Britain Prepares for High Winter Heating¹ and Electricity Costs

The government organization that controls the cost of energy in Great Britain recently increased what is known² as a price cap. The price cap is the highest amount that gas suppliers can charge for a unit of energy.

The new, higher cost has people concerned that they may not be able to pay for their gas and electricity this winter. Some might pay as much as $4,188 for energy next year. Earlier this year, the price cap was at $2,320.

Why such a change?

Oil and gas prices around the world have been increasing since 2021 as economies³ started up again after the coronavirus pandemic. More business activities required more fuel.

Then, Russia invaded⁴ Ukraine in late February, creating a new energy crisis⁵. Russia limited the amount of natural gas it sent to European countries that needed it to power factories, produce electricity and keep homes warm.

Some energy companies are charging more because they are worried that Russia might completely⁶ stop sending gas to European countries. And in Britain, prices are up because the country does not produce much gas or have a good way to store it. As a result, Britain must purchase gas often in a market where prices are high.

Citibank, a U.S. financial company, believes the higher energy prices will cause inflation⁷ in Britain to reach 18 percent in 2023. And the Bank of England says an economic slowdown known as a recession⁸ will start later this year.

Public health and private aid organizations worry that high energy prices will cause a "catastrophe⁹" as Britons choose between keeping their homes warm and eating enough food.

What can government do?

As prices rise, the British government plans to give people between $450 and $1,400 to help pay for energy costs. But the help is seen by many as not enough.

If the government approves more money for fuel, it will probably not come until September. That is the time the Conservative¹⁰ Party will select a new leader to replace Prime¹¹ Minister Boris Johnson.

The Labour Party says the government should increase the amount it provides for people to pay for fuel by raising taxes on energy companies. However, the two politicians¹² who are trying to become the next Prime Minister do not seem to support that idea.

Giovanna Speciale leads an organization called the Southeast London Community Energy group. It helps people pay their bills. She said the money will help but it is only a short-term¹³ solution to a bigger problem with Britain's energy system. Because the system is privately¹⁴ run, she said, "there's very little that the government can do to intervene¹⁵ in this."

Other European countries are seeing higher energy costs, but not as high. In France, gas prices are capped at 2021 levels. In Germany, prices are up by 38 percent since last year. However, the government is reducing some taxes, which will make it easier for the average person to buy gas. In Italy, prices are going up, but the government recently approved over $8 billion to help people pay their energy bills.

Words in This Story

inflation–n. a continual¹⁶ increase in the price of goods and services

catastrophe –n. a disaster

intervene –v. to become involved in something as a way to influence the outcome

1 heating   

n.加热，供暖，暖气装置；adj.加热的，供暖的

参考例句：

• They will install a heating and lighting system in our house.他们将在我们家装上供热供电系统。
• If the pressure is too low,the heating system will act up.如果压力太低，供暖系统就会出毛病。

2 known   

adj.大家知道的；知名的，已知的

参考例句：

• He is a known artist.他是一个知名的艺术家。
• He is known both as a painter and as a statesman.他是知名的画家及政治家。

3 economies   

n.节约( economy的名词复数 )；经济；经济情况；经济结构

参考例句：

• A customs union would integrate the economies of these countries. 关税联盟会把这些国家的经济紧密结合在一起。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Economies have peaks and troughs. 经济有高峰，也有低谷。 来自辞典例句

4 invaded   

v.侵入，侵略( invade的过去式和过去分词 )；涌入；侵袭；侵犯

参考例句：

• Troops invaded on August 9th that year. 军队是在那年的8月9日入侵的。
• The diseased tissue can be easily invaded by these microorganisms. 有病的组织容易被微生物侵袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

6 completely   

adv.完全地，十分地，全然

参考例句：

• She never completely gave up hope.她从不完全放弃希望。
• I feel completely in the dark on this question.这件事使我感到茫然。

7 inflation   

n.胀大，夸张，通货膨胀

参考例句：

• Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
• The inflation of the airbed took several minutes.给空气床垫充气花了几分钟时间。

8 recession   

n.（工商业的）衷退（期），萧条（期）

参考例句：

• Manufacturing fell sharply under the impact of the recession.受到经济萧条的影响，制造业急剧衰退。
• A rise in interest rates plunged Britain deeper into recession.利率的提高导致英国经济更加萧条。

9 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

10 conservative   

adj.保守的，守旧的；n.保守的人，保守派

参考例句：

• He is a conservative member of the church.他是一个守旧教会教友。
• The young man is very conservative.这个年轻人很守旧。

11 prime   

adj.首要的，主要的；最好的，第一流的

参考例句：

• The prime minister spoke of the general insecurity in the country.总理谈到了全国普遍存在的不安全。
• He met with the Prime Minister of Japan for an hour.他和日本首相会见了一个小时。

12 politicians   

政治家( politician的名词复数 )； 政客，玩弄权术者

参考例句：

• Politicians are ultimately accountable to the voters. 从政者最终是向选民负责。
• backstairs deals between politicians 政客之间的幕后交易

13 short-term   

adj.短期的

参考例句：

• The short-term training class has been run three times.短训班办了三期。
• For this they are running short-term courses and evening classes.为此，他们办了短训班和夜校。

14 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

15 intervene   

vi.干涉，干预，干扰，阻挠

参考例句：

• When riot broke out,the police were obliged to intervene.发生暴乱时，警察有责任干预。
• You don't intervene between those two drunks.你不要在那两个酒鬼之间进行调解。

16 continual   

adj.不间断的，不停的；多次重复的，频频的

参考例句：

• I am tired of this continual rain.不停的下雨使我厌倦。
• He has continual arguments with his father.他屡次跟他父亲争论。