Category Archives: Household bills

UK ministers scrap energy efficiency taskforce after six months

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Group tasked with overseeing initiative to insulate homes and upgrade boilers was only set up in March

The government’s energy efficiency taskforce, charged with reducing the UK’s energy use by 15% by 2030, has been scrapped months after it was established.

The group, which was overseeing an initiative to insulate homes and upgrade boilers, was announced by the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, in his autumn statement last year as part of plans to boost investment in energy efficiency.

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New £1bn government upgrade to plug Great Britain’s draughtiest homes

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Households could save £400 a year on energy bills via means-tested insulation scheme

Households could save up to £400 a year on energy bills under a new means-tested scheme to insulate more than 300,000 of Great Britain’s draughtiest homes.

The government is spending £1bn on grants for homes that have low energy efficiency ratings and are in lower council tax bands.

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Third of working tenants in England ‘lack savings to pay rent if they lose job’

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Half have maximum of a month’s worth of rent put by as costs rise, Shelter survey finds

A third of working tenants in England do not have enough savings to pay rent if they lose their job, putting them at risk of losing their home, according to research by the housing charity Shelter.

Record rents and the rising cost of other household bills are putting tenants’ finances under pressure and mean many are unable to set money aside for emergencies.

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A social tariff could bring a warm glow to UK energy policy

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A lower price cap will still mean unaffordable bills for many. Yet a fairer alternative has been quietly dropped

Nearly a decade ago, former Labour leader Ed Miliband sowed the seeds of the energy price cap, vowing to protect households from unfair tariffs by freezing their energy bills. But even though a cap has been in place since 2018, bills today can be far from affordable, even when they are fair.

On Friday, industry regulator Ofgem will set its new limit on how much suppliers can charge per unit of gas and electricity. Analysts at Cornwall Insight expect it to lower the energy price cap from £2,074 a year for the typical household to £1,823, which would be its lowest level since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

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UK windfarm red tape to cost billpayers £1.5bn a year, say analysts

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Analysis finds Treasury rules on new windfarms likely to stifle energy generation and keep bills high

New offshore windfarms will be strangled by government red tape, costing UK billpayers £1.5bn a year, an analysis has found.

The latest government auction for new offshore windfarms, due to be completed in September, could result in few projects making it through Treasury rules, according to the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), a non-profit organisation.

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Help with UK energy bills unlikely this winter, suggests Grant Shapps

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Energy secretary says government wants to focus on cutting taxes once inflation falls

Grant Shapps has suggested it is unlikely the government will step in to protect households from rising energy bills this winter.

The energy secretary said in an interview with the Times that once inflation had fallen the government would “absolutely” need to cut taxes.

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International Energy Agency warns of higher bills this winter

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Fatih Birol says China’s economic recovery combined with harsh winter could pile pressure on gas supplies

The head of the International Energy Agency has said energy prices may spike again this winter, forcing government to subsidise bills – just days after state support for UK households fell away.

Fatih Birol said a rapid improvement in the Chinese economy, coupled with a harsh winter, could put pressure on gas supplies and push up bills for consumers.

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Water firms push for bills in England to rise by up to 40%, say reports

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Plans drawn up to pay for cost of dealing with sewage crisis and climate emergency

Water companies are reportedly pushing for bills in England to rise by up to 40% under plans being drawn up to pay for the cost of dealing with the sewage crisis and the climate emergency.

The increases are due to be announced next year and could drive annual bills up from an average of £450 to £680 in parts of the country by the end of the decade, according to a Times report citing consultation documents.

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UK government urged to outline plans to help with winter energy bills

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Report by cross-party MPs criticises previous ‘lack of urgency in addressing market failures’

MPs have urged the government to set out its plans to protect households from high energy bills this winter as they said about 1.7 million people, including some of the most vulnerable groups, had been left waiting too long to receive previous support.

The public accounts committee (PAC) said that although schemes were introduced quickly, the government “did not have the bandwidth” to make sure help reached all groups in a timely fashion.

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Thames Water accused of ‘flimsy PR stunt’ over bonus as boss’s pay swells

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Sarah Bentley lands £1.5m package despite saying she would shun bonus amid criticism of water companies

Thames Water has been accused of conducting a “flimsy PR stunt” as it prepares to report that its chief executive has landed nearly double her annual salary with a £1.5m pay package – after announcing that she would shun her bonus amid intense criticism of Britain’s water companies.

Sarah Bentley said last month that she and the firm’s finance chief, Alastair Cochran, would forgo their bonuses and any payments due under long-term incentive plans for the 2022-23 financial year.

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South West Water under investigation over leaks and usage figures

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Shares in owner Pennon Group fall as it says Ofwat has launched inquiry into South West Water

South West Water is being investigated by the industry regulator over whether it accurately reported leaks and figures showing how much water is used by its customers.

Pennon Group, which owns South West Water and Bristol Water Group, told its shareholders Ofwat had announced an investigation into the company’s operational performance during 2021 and 2022.

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‘The whole thing stinks’: UK water firms to pay out £14.7bn in dividends as customers foot sewage costs

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With cost of cleanup to be passed on to bill payers, analysis shows they will also pay £624 more by 2030 to fund investor payouts

Water companies will pay an estimated £14.7bn in dividends by the end of this decade, while making customers pay for new investment to stem the tide of sewage pollution in seas and rivers, analysis for the Observer has revealed.

Liberal Democrat MP Tim Farron denounced the billions going to shareholders as “absolutely scandalous” while families struggling with the cost of living would be facing increases in bills to pay for the sewage cleanup.

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Energy bills could fall to average of £2,053 as Ofgem prepares to lower cap

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But campaigners say it will not give much relief to struggling households as government support ends

Household energy bills could fall to an average of £2,053 a year this summer as the regulator prepares to lower its cap on energy prices next week, according to analysts.

However, campaigners have warned that the lower cap on energy bills, to be announced on Thursday, is unlikely to provide much relief to households that struggled to pay their bills over the winter because the government’s support schemes have come to an end.

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New prepayment meter rules must be properly enforced, says Grant Shapps

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Suppliers in Great Britain have agreed code banning them from installations in homes of over-85s

The energy secretary, Grant Shapps, has urged Ofgem to turn words “into action” to ensure new industry rules designed to protect vulnerable people from being forced on to prepayment meters are properly enforced.

The Guardian revealed on Monday that all energy suppliers in Great Britain had signed up to a code of conduct banning them from putting the meters in the homes of people aged 85 and over as well as those with severe health conditions.

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Calls for energy ‘social tariff’ as UK government support ends

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Low-income household will spend on average £200 more on bills than last year, Which? warns

Some of the UK’s least well-off households could be left more than £200 worse-off on their energy bills this year because of reduced government support, the consumer body Which? has warned.

Joining calls made by other campaigners, it said the government urgently needed to introduce a “social tariff” for gas and electricity to protect the most financially vulnerable.

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Watchdog to block shareholder payouts if UK water companies miss targets

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Ofwat says new powers will be used if firms fail to reach performance and environmental goals

The UK water regulator is to use new powers to block companies from shareholder payouts if they fail to hit performance and environmental targets.

Ofwat, which in December heavily criticised some of the country’s biggest suppliers over the size of dividend payments relative to their financial performance, said the new rules would also mean water companies would “maintain a higher level of overall financial health”.

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Jeremy Hunt makes U-turn on planned cut to energy support

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Campaigners unite with suppliers to call on ministers to give long-term help to struggling households

Ministers are under pressure to announce plans for a social tariff to help Britons struggling with their energy bills over the long term, after the government performed a U-turn on a planned cut to support for households.

On the morning of the chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s budget speech, the government confirmed the energy price guarantee would continue at its current rate, which limits a typical annual household bill to £2,500. It is being extended from April, when it was due to expire, for a further three months until the end of June.

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Extra costs for customers on prepayment meters to be scrapped in budget

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Treasury says move will save four million households £45 a year on their energy bills

Prepayment meter customers will no longer be charged more to receive their energy under reforms to be announced in the budget.

The chancellor is to end the “prepayment premium” from July, saving more than four million households £45 a year on their energy bills, according to the Treasury.

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BBC to suspend licence fee for King Charles coronation ceremony

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One-off dispensation for weekend celebrations will allow venues to screen events without a TV licence

The BBC is to suspend the licence fee as part of a one-off dispensation for the king’s coronation weekend.

The move will allow venues to screen the live coronation ceremony coverage on 6 May and the coronation concert on 7 May without needing to buy a TV licence.

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Selfish or a godsend? Readers share their views on wood-burning stoves

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Demand for wood stoves is soaring in energy crisis despite research showing their harmful effects

Demand for wood-burning stoves, including in urban areas, has soared as households look for more affordable ways to stay warm during the energy crisis.

Campaigners have called for stricter legislation on their use because of their negative impact on air pollution and health, with wood burning in the UK gaining in popularity over the past decade.

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