All the chatter today among British people is energy regulator Ofgem's rise in the cap on power bills to a record £3,549 ($4,189) beginning Oct. 1 from £1,971 ($2,330) at present. That cap is expected to rise to £5,439 ($6,427) by January and £7,272 ($8,594) by spring -- all due to skyrocketing wholesale NatGas and electricity prices caused by declining Russian energy supplies to Europe, made worse by Western sanctions that have backfired. 

"An increase of this much cannot be budgeted for by households with no wiggle room," said Peter Smith, director of policy and advocacy for the National Energy Action charity. "Come October, low-income households will simply not turn on their heating."

Reuters spoke to one Brit, Philip Keetley, who said: 

"The cost of living has increased and yet you're still expected to live on the money provided for when there wasn't a crisis ... I either can have my heating on or eat." 

Another Brit, Dawn White, who has kidney failure, fears the cost of soaring energy costs means she won't be able to afford life-saving medical treatment:

"Without my (dialysis) machine five times a week, 20 hours, I will die," the 59-year-old woman said. 

Soaring energy inflation has crushed real earnings for Brits, forcing many to pull back on spending.