Scottish Power have confirmed a new set of price rises next month, in a move that Energywatch Scotland have described as a ‘brutal assult’ on its customers.

Gas prices will rise by an average of 17% while electricity costs will be upped by 10%. This is despite the fact that the company has recently announced record profits of £675m, up by 47%, and has already raised gas and electricity prices by 15% and 8% in March this year.

The company blames wholesale prices for the hikes, and says that although they have absorbed most of the impact of 80% higher costs some of it had to be passed on to their customers.

Charities including Citizens Advice have repeated their warnings that many vulnerable people are now facing fuel poverty, and that high fuel costs are a significant contributor to rising debt problems.

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