Brian Leishman MP: Why public ownership is essential for a fairer society

People and planet – not corporate profit – should always be front and centre of what any government does.

That is why I was dismayed when energy regulators Ofgem recently announced that the energy price cap will rise by 6.4 per cent from April.

It comes at a time when many politicians and corporations are trying to tell us that the cost of living crisis is over. They are telling us that stability is here again.

However, that could not be further from the truth. The cost of living crisis is still very much raging on.

Such an increase in energy costs will yet again hurt everyday people, along with the most vulnerable, and this is not stability.

Ofgem’s mission is to “protect energy consumers, especially vulnerable people, by ensuring they are treated fairly”.

With a 10 per cent increase in October, a 1.2 per cent increase in January, as well as a further 6.4 per cent increase to come in April, Ofgem are clearly failing in their primary objective of looking after consumers. And this is not just an example of some inept, feeble regulator.

While many are struggling to make ends meet, energy companies have been returning incredible profits.

They made more than £420 billion in profits since the start of the energy crisis while bills continue to rise at eye-watering rates and, inevitably, people become poorer.

Putting it bluntly, consecutive governments have failed you. We are living in a system that is completely rigged in favour of these energy companies.

Things must change because the privatisation of key services, utilities and infrastructure by both the Tories and SNP has been catastrophic for people’s bank balances and for our planet.

Is it such an outlandish idea that the public should be in charge of the vital services that they rely upon?

Why should we let corporations exploit our national resources? Public ownership is just plain common sense.

The increases in prices we have seen, and the rises still to come, are scandalous.

It is time we realise that there is no profit figure that will ever satisfy the greed of these companies which are continuously ripping people off.

While the UK is the sixth richest country in the world, poverty is on the rise with living standards plummeting.

There is absolutely no need for the grotesque inequality which people are suffering from.

The UK must be better than being a nation of growing inequality where millions of people are stuck in low wage employment, putting up with public services which have been neglected.

We, as the Labour Government, must build a fairer UK and put an end to the relentless accumulation of wealth by corporations.

Speaking to people at the recent Scottish Labour conference, it is clear that members are overwhelmingly in favour of seeing public services in public hands.