Don't Pay UK spokesperson responds to claims they're persuading people to break the law

A spokesperson for Don't Pay UK has responded to claims that they're persuading people to break the law. Check it out:

Amid the cost of living crisis, the campaign has seen more than 100,000 Brits pledging not to pay their energy bills from October when the next price hike is expected to hit households across the nation.

In April, the energy price cap jumped from £1,277 to £1,971 per year, and new figures released this week predict that this will jump to £3,582 from 1 October, with a further increase to £4,266 from January 2023.

Don't Pay UK has urged people to cancel their direct debits to energy companies this autumn if the government and the firms don't step in and lower the prices.

It's a simple idea: We demand the govt scrap the energy price rises and deliver affordable energy for all. We will build a million pledges and by Oct 1st if the govt and energy companies fail to act we will cancel our direct debits. Read more here: https://t.co/NPF8VQXcHD pic.twitter.com/E4gPenIXiL

— Don't Pay. (@dontpayuk) June 18, 2022

Jake Cable, a spokesperson for the grassroots campaign, appeared on Good Morning Britain on Friday where he responded to concerns about the consequences this could have on those taking part in the boycott.

In the segment, host Adil Ray said: "They can't get away with not paying it at all, they'll end up accruing debt or they'll have court cases against them, surely?"

Jake responded: "We have a £10bn ndebt arrears in this country already. That number is going to grow, it's only going to grow.

"And the more of us that take part in this campaign, that log on to Don't Pay UK and pledge, the more of us that are together, the less likely it is that people can take action."

Presenter Charlotte Hawkins then chimed in to ask whether it was 'irresponsible to encourage people to not pay their bills', suggesting it was 'electricity theft' and could lead to households getting their power cut off or with damaged credit ratings.

But Jake argued: "I wouldn't say that anyone has a right to take as much money out of people's accounts as their rent and mortgage in energy.

"We're the only country in the developed world that is going through this at such an aggressive rate.

"Countries like France that have taken control of their energy companies aren't having these price increases. They're going up by 4 percent - we're going up by 80 percent in October alone."

Earlier on in the interview, the spokesperson said: "We can no longer tolerate the aggressive price gouging that we've seen from energy companies.

"The past 12 years, and particularly the last two years, we've been told time and time again 'tighten your belts, tighten your belts'. And it's gotten to a point where people cannot afford to pay."