Switch-off left Dad's house like an icebox

FORMER Cabinet Minister Sir Jake Berry has revealed his father's power supply was stopped without warning as part of the nationwide switch-off of energy meters.

- By Jonathan Walker

John Berry spent hundreds of pounds on electricians trying to work out why his heating wasn't working, before discovering his meter had been remotely disabled.

His son Sir Jake, a former Minister for the Northern Powerhouse who served as Party Chair under former PM Liz Truss, said: "One frosty morning, his house was like an icebox. No letter. No phone call. Nothing."

His father's north Wales property had a Radio Teleswitch meter, which uses radio signals to switch between tariffs at specific times of the day. It was installed to use Economy 7 heating, which offered cheaper electricity overnight.

RTS meters are also found in properties without a gas supply. But the system is being replaced, with the radio signals they rely on coming to an end.

The government was forced to abandon plans for a mass switch-off on June 30 amid fears that many households had not been prepared for the change.