The industry price cap, which sets the maximum rate suppliers can charge, is expected to top £3,500 a year from October for the average dual-fuel tariff, an increase of more than £1,500 since April. Ofgem’s announcement, which Labor said would “strike fear” in hearts across the country, will give new urgency to calls for the Government to step in to extend the £15bn package to tackle the of rising household costs announced in May. Wholesale natural gas prices have risen even more since then and hit new records on Thursday, signaling little respite from the relentless rise in energy prices. Experts have predicted that average annual bills could top £5,000 from January, with rising electricity prices pushing inflation to over 18% next year. Strong figures showed Britons are already worried about bills this summer despite low energy consumption compared to the winter peak. A YouGov poll found that around 40% of the 1,700 adults surveyed had experienced problems with their food and energy bills in the past three months. Around three-quarters of respondents said the government was doing too little to help those struggling with the recent rise in the cost of living, including two-thirds of Conservative voters. The shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said: “The only people who are resisting measures to help people are the government. We wanted the parliament to be recalled before the [Ofgem] announcement but this did not happen. “We want an emergency budget. We want the government to say what it will do. This announcement is going to strike fear into the hearts of families up and down the country. Urgent action is required. Everyone has come up with action plans, except for Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak – the two people who can actually do something about it – who have remained silent.” Despite warnings that two-thirds of households, or around 45 million people, will be pushed into fuel poverty by January, the two candidates to replace Boris Johnson as prime minister and leader of the Conservative Party have so far refused to mention any major new measures to protect the most vulnerable families. Sunak has promised to scrap VAT on energy bills and another no-cost increase in household help on benefits, while Liz Truss has pledged help “across the board” for companies and households. Both Truss and Sunak have ruled out freezing the energy price cap. Labor leader Keir Starmer has earmarked £29bn to freeze the cap which is funded in part by an £8bn boosted tax on energy company profits. The outsized profits oil and gas companies have enjoyed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine were underlined on Thursday when the biggest North Sea oil and gas producer reported a 12-fold rise in profits. Harbor Energy said half-year profits reached $1.5bn (£1.3bn). Harbor said it would deliver an additional $200 million to shareholders on the back of bumper earnings. Spectacular profits at major oil and gas producers since the war have sparked accusations of profiteering and led Sunak in May to introduce a windfall tax. The Unite union said major energy suppliers, distributors and producers made a combined profit of £15.8bn last year. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham claimed that “rampant corporate profiteering is at the heart of skyrocketing energy bills”. Fuel poverty charity National Energy Action (NEA) estimated that raising the cap above £3,000 would push the number of UK households in fuel poverty from 6.5 million to 8.5 million . Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Adam Scorer, chief executive of the NEA, said: “The scale of the damage caused by these price rises needs to be blown away. A warm house this winter will be a dream for millions of people, as their price is a decent and healthy quality of LIFE. “Even with a mild winter, millions of people face a deep freeze. Action is needed now to avoid the bleakest of winters.” Graham Duxbury, chief executive of poverty reduction charity Groundwork, said: “What we need are simpler, more stable funding models so that we can help those who are worse off make better use of the help they receive and to keep as much warmth as they can this winter, but also help those in fuel poverty for the first time to make the practical and behavioral changes needed to minimize their bills.” Environmentalists have said the government must redouble efforts to improve the energy efficiency of homes in light of the energy crisis. Mike Childs, head of policy at Friends of the Earth, said: “A national, street-by-street home insulation program that focuses on those most in need would reduce energy use, reduce climate-changing pollution and could reduce energy bills by £1,000 or more every year.”
