The proportion of the population that cannot afford to keep their home at an adequate temperature, in winter and summer, has doubled in the period 2020-2022, going from 9.4% to 19.2% in Catalonia, two points more than the Spanish average and far from the 6.8% of the European Union, as stated in the report of the Sindicatura de Greuges Energy poverty in Catalonia 2023. Pending challenges in a context of energy crisis, which was debated this afternoon in the commission of the Ombudsman of Parliament.
The rise in the price of supplies has had an impact on domestic economies such that family spending on water, gas and electricity has increased by 7% compared to the period before the covid pandemic and 30% in relation to before the 2008 crisis, is evident in said document. The Sindicatura indicates that it received 1,614 complaints related to energy consumption in 2022, 125% more than in 2019. Specifically, citizens expressed their difficulties in being able to pay their bills, the problems in processing the social bonus and their concern. due to the interruption of supply due to non-payment
The report of the Audit Office denounces that the electric social bonus does not reach the 23% of the population that suffers from severe poverty. For this reason, the section of recommendations to the State includes “debureaucratizing” its processing and simplifying the documentation that must be provided, “very complex to compile for vulnerable people.” Other suggestions are to review compliance with the agreement signed two years ago between the Generalitat and Endesa, within the framework of law 24/2015 on urgent measures to confront the emergency in the field of housing and energy poverty to guarantee aid or discounts to the most needy citizens, as well as promoting agreements with other supply companies, as dictated by said norm.
The trustee, Esther Giménez-Salinas, recalls that it is urgent to undertake the regulatory deployment of the aforementioned law in the sense of regulating the communication protocol between social services and companies to avoid cuts to the most fragile families.
The report warns that, “unlike monetary poverty, there is no clear consensus on how the prevalence of energy poverty should be sized.” It indicates that three basic criteria are taken into consideration: the ability to normally pay utility bills, being able to keep the home at an adequate temperature and the weight of energy expenditure in relation to the family budget. Depending on the criterion taken as a reference, this situation would affect between 5% and 20% of the population in Catalonia.
