The Conservative leadership candidates came under growing pressure on Sunday to detail plans to tackle soaring energy bills, with increasing calls to find a way to freeze the amount households pay.
Sir Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labour party, and some of the UK’s largest energy providers have put forward separate plans to cap the typical household bill below £2,000, as concerns grow that runaway gas and electricity prices could plunge millions of families into poverty and trigger a deep recession.
The energy crisis is now a “national emergency”, said the Labour leader, adding that the Conservative leadership had “failed to prepare and refused to invest” in the sector. Starmer said his party’s plan would save the typical family £1,000, bring energy costs under control and help tackle inflation. It would be funded through initiatives including increased taxes on oil and gas company revenues.