This opinion piece was first published in the Express on 8 August 2026
Britain’s energy debt crisis has been laid bare. More than a million households have fallen behind on their bills, with single parents, disabled people and Black families among those hit hardest.
But the figures reveal a quieter scandal too.
While pensioners are proportionately less likely than younger families to fall behind, the sheer number of older people suffering is staggering.
Many in this generation dread the shame of owing money, so for more than 80,000 single pensioners to have slipped into arrears despite everything they do to avoid it, something has gone badly wrong.
And they are only the ones we can…