The pre-payment meter scandal just won't go away. Energy companies in the UK are refusing to install them and instead forcing people to take smart meters instead.

A spokesperson for a leading energy company told FNN:

Look. It's all about control.

If a customer has a pre-payment meter they have control. They can decide when to allow themselves to be cut off by not topping up the meter.

But if a customer has a smart meter then we have the control. We can cut them off whenever we want and charge more if we want to depending on their energy consumption.

That's why we charge more for energy from pre-payment meters. Not to punish the poor but as a disincentive for people to request pre-payment meters in the first place. It's all about control, see?

Australian energy campaigner Bill "The Slot" Heslop commented:

When I was young we all had pre-payment meters in our bedsits in Notting Hill. You put a coin in and you got power. When it ran out, you had no power. It was up to me. My choice. Now these bastards want to control how I use energy that I pay for. WTF!