Gideon demands urgent action as bills set to rise again

Taunton and Wellington’s MP, Gideon Amos, has demanded urgent action following news of another increase in energy bills.

Regulator Ofgem said this week that the price cap would increase by 4% on October 1st, reflecting higher wholesale gas prices as a result of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

A household using a typical amount of gas and electricity will pay £60 a year extra – more than a third of households are on fixed tariffs so their prices will not change.

Gideon said: “Higher bills are the last thing people in Taunton and Wellington should have to shoulder, given the ongoing cost of living crisis. Government should urgently break the link and end the cost of gas determining electricity bills.

“Our Liberal Democrat Essential Energy Guarantee would do just that and take profits from energy networks, using them to bring bills down generally. Our plan is to halve energy bills over the next ten years – Andy Burnham should adopt it, change course and stop these price rises from coming into effect.” 

The party’s guarantee would give every household an essential amount of energy, equal to 50% of typical consumption, at a discounted rate.

Gideon added: “Every single household in Britain should be able to afford their basic everyday energy needs, regardless of what happens in global energy markets and regardless of who happens to be sitting in Number 10.

“The fact that energy bills continue to soar, means households are being forced to choose between heating and eating, while cold and damp homes cause avoidable illnesses like asthma and pneumonia, costing the NHS over £1bn a year.

“This is not just an economic scandal - it is a health one too”.

The announcement builds on the Liberal Democrats' existing plan to halve energy bills over the next ten years, a policy first proposed by Gideon at the party’s 2025 conference.  

The plan includes an emergency home insulation scheme, breaking the link between gas and electricity prices, and stimulating a rooftop solar revolution.