Voices: ‘A national disgrace’: Readers on energy poverty this winter
Claire and Gareth Ferris’ story of struggling to keep their Warwickshire home warm amid rising energy bills and poor insulation has resonated with Independent readers.Responding to the article, many highlighted that energy poverty is widespread, with some sharing their own experiences of freezing homes, mounting debt, and the daily challenge of staying warm. Several pointed out that British housing is often inefficient, poorly insulated, and expensive, contrasting it with countries such as Denmark, where better construction and higher public support make cold winters more manageable.Others emphasised that while government support schemes exist, they are insufficient, and households are forced to ration heat, exercise to stay warm, or improvise with measures such as plastic sheeting. A few readers stressed that some people still need practical advice on budgeting and prioritising heating, while others argued the root problem is a lack of government action on energy security and rising costs.Many also noted the human cost of cold homes, warning that extreme winter conditions can be deadly, particularly for the elderly, vulnerable, or those in poor housing. Overall, readers agreed that the issue goes beyond individual behaviour – it reflects systemic failures in housing quality, energy provision, and social support.Here’s what you had to say:Dire straitsDuring the early 1970s oil embargo, we could not afford oil to heat our home either. We used plastic sheeting to cover all of our drafty windows. Us kids cut strips of paper grocery bags about an inch wide to staple all around the sheeting, which held it to the wooden window frames. The windows we could not reach outside were sealed in a similar fashion on the inside.We also closed off the entire second floor of the house and sealed the door to upstairs with plastic sheeting. With only a living room, kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom left, we heated with a wood-burning stove.I was 10 at the time, and my job was to take my younger brothers out into the woods each day to gather firewood for that evening. We ate, slept, and lived in that living room that way each winter until 1981.It certainly seems many folks are in those same dire straits now. I feel your pain.GalvanUK housing is inefficient and depressingI agree the houses in the UK are very ugly, depressing to look at, inefficient, and of poor quality. I believe I’m correct in saying we have some of the lowest housing standards in Europe. Utterly shameful in the sixth richest economy on the planet.I have family in Denmark. Beautiful houses, better insulation – triple glazing, better quality and much better looking. It’s colder there, but they pay lower energy costs. Higher wages, higher taxes, much better public services, much lower homelessness, and a much happier population. I wish I could live there.BexJFT97Energy bills spiralling out of controlWe are unable to meet our monthly ‘usage’ costs in full and owe almost £4k on our gas and electric. I have absolutely no idea how we are ever going to be able to pay this, and the shortfall just keeps increasing month on month. This island is an energy cartel.HelenEnergy advice fundingDo away with the energy advice service and use the savings to reduce bills. Also, make the regulator truly independent, not paid supporters of the energy companies. When funding is provided by the people you are regulating, they are always going to be biased.PAULT2Insulating and staying activeI’ve lived in my old solid brick-walled cottage for 27 years. In that time, instead of whining, I insulated bit by bit. I’m half German, grew up there, and every morning, no matter how cold it is outside, I open all the doors and windows for at least half an hour for a good ‘blow through’, getting rid of stale, musty, moist air, dust, and mould spores.Sure it’s cold, but I am busy cleaning, so I get warm.I insulated my cold, solid brick walls too. Every external wall has either insulated plasterboard or polystyrene on a roll put onto the wall and then papered on top.Then I went to a charity shop last week and bought a huge pair of lined velvet curtains. One curtain does each door front and back. They cost me £4. Another pair, which are so thick and heavy, cost £6. One curtain for the large front window and another for the back window, and they get drawn as soon as it starts to get dark.fenwomanFar behind homes in EuropeI am afraid British houses are far behind houses in Europe in terms of energy efficiency and quality of build. They are extremely expensive and very poor quality, with no heat insulation and windows with gaps that would almost allow cats to get through and run away. No wonder people are struggling to heat such houses. There is no amount of energy that is enough to heat such a house, especially in winter windy days.Grumpyoldman38Even hard-working people struggle to make ends meet with the cost of living as the bills are sky-high, and hard-working people should never be the ones that struggle in life to make ends meet. The old people now get a winter fuel payment from the Government, and that’s a good thing, but for everyone else there is no such help. Even the unemployed and those living in poverty have to decide when it’s really cold whether to put the heating on or buy food for themselves and their children. It’s more like 1825 than 2025.Stacey BenoitBills just keep risingI am finding it difficult to keep the home warm – the bills just keep rising. I feel so sorry for families with children. It’s not just heat poverty; for many, the food prices are just unreal.jellyjVictorian draughtsWhen I first married in the 1970s, we used to put polythene over the windows to keep the cold out. Our house was single-glazed with Victorian sashes, and they let the draughts everywhere.HeraExercise to keep warmSome time ago, a politician was pilloried for suggesting people might do exercise to keep warm… maybe he said it cynically, but for those who can do it, a couple of minutes running on the spot is a very good way to get warmer. The body continues to burn energy for a while after you stop.It has many other beneficial effects as well.For those who are not able to run on the spot, ANY exercise they can do, even sitting down, will help warm you from within, where we need to maintain temperature.much0adoBlame the ToriesWhy didn’t the Tories do anything about securing our own energy within their one and a half decades in power? Why didn’t they do ANYTHING within their 15-year stint apart from rinse the economic pot dry, austeritise our public services, leave our infrastructure to rot, and privatise anything and everything they could get their hands on?I blame the Tories and I’ll continue to blame them for LIFE.AmySome of the comments have been edited for this article for brevity and clarity.Want to share your views? Simply register your details below. Once registered, you can comment on the day’s top stories for a chance to be featured. Alternatively, click ‘log in’ or ‘register’ in the top right corner to sign in or sign up.Make sure you adhere to our community guidelines, which can be found here. For a full guide on how to comment, click here. More
