ENERGY bills will rise by around £500 for the average family from April – despite prices falling.
Experts predict that Ofgem will today reveal a fall in their maximum price cap by around £1,000 to £3,295 as wholesale prices collapse.
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But ministers’ cap for families is still set to rise from £2,500 to £3,000 as they try to wean Brits off state support and slash the ballooning bill for the state.
Last night Jeremy Hunt faced growing calls to smooth the rise in bills as prices are set to tumble even further later this year.
Torsten Bell of the Resolution Foundation think tank said: “The Ofgem price cap will confirm that the cost of the government’s energy support scheme next year will be 90 per cent lower than originally thought.
“That’s good news for the Chancellor – and in the long run British families, but in the short run households face a 20 per cent spike in their energy bills this April unless the chancellor uses his extra savings to keep everyone’s energy bills down.”
Cornwall Insight predict the price cap is set to fall from the current level of £4,279 per year for the average household from April.
And they think it will fall even further to £2,153 in July, and £2,161 in October – meaning ministers will effectively stop subsidizing Brits’ bills in just a few months’ time.
Meanwhile, the Lib Dems today urge ministers to cancel the planned April hike and bring in a one-off “bonanza bonus” tax on oil and gas bosses raking in extra cash.
They demand a bankers-bonus style raid on top profits after executives take home millions in bonuses and benefits.
Lib Dem chief Ed Davey said: “Rishi Sunak must act now to save families from a cost-of-living cliff edge, by cutting energy bills instead of increasing them.”
