Liz Truss today pledges ‘immediate support’ to help with soaring power bills if she becomes prime minister.
The price cap is expected to be raised to more than £3,500 per household today – almost treble the figure a year ago.
Analysts say bills could rise by a further £1,000 in January, with more pain in April as Vladimir Putin ‘weaponises’ his gas resources.
But writing in the Daily Mail, Miss Truss says she would use an emergency budget next month to ‘ensure support is on its way to get through these tough times’.
Energy firms warn that millions of families may be unable to pay their bills this winter without government help. And business leaders predict that many firms will go under unless action is taken to rein in their exorbitant power costs.
Writing in the Daily Mail, Liz Truss (pictured) says she would use an emergency budget next month to ‘ensure support is on its way to get through these tough times’
The energy price cap is expected to be raised to more than £3,500 per household today – almost treble the figure a year ago
Miss Truss and her rival for No 10, Rishi Sunak, have both pledged to continue a £15billion support package unveiled in June.
But the Foreign Secretary today indicates she will go significantly further to ease the squeeze on cash-strapped homes.
She says Britain is facing ‘extraordinarily difficult economic times’, as a result of stagnant growth, high taxes and Russia ‘using gas supply as a weapon’.
But she claims she can ‘chart a confident course through this economic storm’ and stave off a recession with her tax-cutting agenda.
‘The impact on our cost of living is clear at the supermarket checkout, at the petrol pump and on our latest energy bills,’ she writes.
‘I know how hard it is for millions of Britons, and how grave concerns are about the consequences of today’s decision by Ofgem on the next energy price cap. The rest of Europe is facing the same challenge, which will loom large as winter sets in.
‘If I am elected leader of the Conservative Party and prime minister, I will take decisive action on entering No 10 to provide immediate support, but will also tackle the root causes of these issues so we are never again in this difficult position. To those of you feeling the squeeze, my message is clear: I will ensure support is on its way and we get through these tough times.’
Miss Truss’s intervention comes as:
- She also reveals she will give the green light for a resumption of fracking;
- Charities warned that more than eight million people could be plunged into fuel poverty this winter;
- Rishi Sunak finally confirmed he would support Miss Truss’s economic plans if he lost the leadership race;
- An independent analysis of Labour’s plans for an energy freeze found an £8billion black hole in the costings.
In today’s article, Miss Truss says she will press ahead with her plan to slash taxes, with cuts expected to both national insurance and corporation tax in next month’s ‘fiscal event’.
And she stresses the need to push for growth and avoid a recession that would take a ‘terrible toll’. Miss Truss has already pledged a suspension of green levies on energy, taking around £150 off bills.
She gives few details today of what additional help she is planning – or how much cash she is prepared to devote to the crisis – saying she has yet to see options being drawn up by the Treasury for the incoming prime minister.
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, who is tipped to be her chancellor, has held talks with energy bosses about a £100billion plan to freeze bills for two years. But insiders played down the prospect of it being approved.
Rishi Sunak (pictured) yesterday indicated he would offer further support to pensioners and low income households if he won, along with cutting VAT on energy bills
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng (right), who is tipped to be her chancellor, has held talks with energy bosses about a £100billion plan to freeze bills for two years. But insiders played down the prospect of it being approved
Government sources said the Treasury was working up options for providing short-term help, allowing the new PM to ‘hit the ground running’.
These include increases in the winter fuel allowance for pensioners, targeted help to those on low incomes through the Warm Homes Discount Scheme or a general rebate on energy bills.
Mr Sunak yesterday indicated he would offer further support to pensioners and low income households if he won, along with cutting VAT on energy bills.
But he warned against Miss Truss’s plans for ‘unfunded’ tax cuts, saying that tackling inflation had to be the priority.
When the Government announced its financial support package in May, Ofgem was expected to set October’s price cap at around £2,800. Instead the regulator is tipped today to raise it to beyond £3,500.
Experts have warned that neither leadership candidate has produced plans that will deal with the magnitude of the crisis.
Torsten Bell, of the Resolution Foundation think-tank, predicted a catastrophe if bills continued to outstrip the ability of families and businesses to pay them.
He added: ‘The world has changed on energy bills so policy will have to too. We can wake up to that reality now or later, but either way we’ll be in a very different phase of this crisis policy-wise by Christmas.’
Caroline Flint, the Government’s fuel poverty adviser, said: ‘The fear is not so much that people will be disconnected by energy companies but that they will disconnect themselves.’