A Glasgow campaign group is to stage a protest outside the Scottish Power headquarters on Friday amid skyrocketing energy bills. 

Power to the People is a grassroots campaign demanding a freeze on energy prices. 

The latest grave forecast from analysts Auxilione predicts energy bills will top £5,000 in April of next year. The outlook suggests bills could pass £3,500 from October.

Protesters will gather outside the energy giants HQ on St Vincent Street in Glasgow city centre from 4pm today.

Regional organiser for the Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) Gordon Martin will speak at the protest.

 

Glasgow Labour councillor, Matt Kerr, said: “The people of Glasgow are at the sharp end of this cost of living catastrophe.

"People across the city and across the country are now facing astronomical increases to their household bills.

"With winter around the corner, inaction from the government and companies making huge profits will lead to untold suffering, with countless people thrust further into poverty." 

He added: “While workers across the UK take action, pushing for fairer pay and better working conditions, fat cats raking in obscene salaries will chastise the working class for daring to ask for enough money to live on. We have had enough, and we will be taking that message to Scottish Power.”

Ross Gibson, from the Power to the People group, said today's demonstration was "the first of many" that will take place over the next few weeks.

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He told BBC Radio Scotland: "We want to push the big five companies into, who we would remember made over the last year made 7.7 billion pounds of profit and are sitting on massive reserves, to hold back on passing on these increases to the customers.

"This is going to have a massive impact upon the cost of living, on the quality of life, the dignity of life that people are experiencing and people are going to be forced into situations where they are choosing between eating and heating. 

"Between their children going to school with clothes that are fitting for them or achieving a standard of life that every human should be able to lead."

Speaking on why the group chose to target Scottish Power, he said: "It's on our doorstep.

"I think if you drive into Glasgow from the southside, just as you hit Kingston Bridge, you see the Scottish Power sign looming over the city and Scottish Power's actions over the last few months have been looming over the people of Glasgow and Scotland and have pushed them into more hardship."