BEFORE April 1’s massive rise in energy bills, some 43% of people in the UK were already struggling to pay for gas and electricity.

For the average household experiencing this 54% increase to the energy price cap, this will mean a rise of nearly £700 throughout the year.

To make matters worse oil and gas companies that operate in the North Sea, such as BP and Shell, announced huge increases in profits.

This has led to calls for a one-time windfall tax, which would take some of the profits from the energy firms and be used to help stem the rising bills.

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To protest the price rises, organisers arranged a Big Power Switch Off on Sunday where people across the UK turned off all their electrical appliances for a short period of time.

But exactly why are people doing this and when is the next Big Power Switch Off?

Why are people turning off their electrical appliances?

The initiative aims to force the UK Government and energy companies to address spiralling energy costs in two ways. The first is to impact the UK Grid, which will have to deal with a massive upsurge in power after all the devices are turned back on.

It's thought if the National Grid is unable to equal the power needs coming from homes, blackouts could occur.

The second way the demonstration plans to encourage change is by hitting the profits of energy companies. Many firms have seen profits in the billion due to high oil and gas prices.

Those organising the mass event say it is a non-partisan protest against inaction on energy bills. They are advising everyone across the UK to take part if it is safe for them to do so.

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The organisers said: “The idea is that, if it won't put you at risk, you switch off all of your electrical appliances, lights, or switch off at the breakers for 10 minutes.

“This short power off will cause an imbalance on the national grid, where consumption becomes lower than predicted and therefore the electrical supply is too great.”

When is the next Big Power Switch Off?

The next Big Power Switch Off in the UK is planned for 7pm on April 16, just a few days before the UK Parliament arrives back from recess.

Following on from this, some have called for the protest to occur weekly until more is done to help those struggling to pay their energy bills.