More in Common polling carried out for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has found that 28% of the public are extremely worried about the prospect of the Iran war pushing up bills this winter, with another 43% saying they are quite concerned1. The research also found that 66% of British adults think the government needs to do more to tackle the cost of energy1. Gas prices rose 27% year on year from 1 October, with forecasts pointing to a further spike in January1.
The findings come as a joint letter signed by the End Fuel Poverty Coalition and coordinated by Cost of Living Action has been sent to the Chancellor, calling for a package of universal energy support as well as targeted measures to help those most in need1. Other signatories include the think tanks Common Wealth, Compass and the New Economics Foundation, the campaign groups 38 Degrees and Tax Justice UK, and the Social Workers Union and National Education Union1.
The letter warns Ministers against what it calls false solutions, saying that bills will remain high and volatile as long as the country depends on fossil fuels, that clean energy is the only long-term solution, and that expanding drilling would do nothing to bring down bills1. The End Fuel Poverty Coalition has submitted plans to the Treasury for an Emergency Heat Tariff to help all households, changes to charges on electricity bills, and improved routes to access additional targeted support for those most in need1.
A spokesperson for the Coalition said:
"Every winter we get a stark reminder that we are a country at the mercy of global prices and the price shock profiteers who cash in on our energy system while people suffer in cold homes."
The same statement said the remaining gas left in the North Sea cannot meet future needs and will leave the country reliant on imports, and that the only lasting way to cut bills is a national mission to get Britain off gas and oil, through more energy efficiency in homes, greater homegrown power generation and bringing down the costs of electricity1. It added that the Budget and the Energy Independence Bill are where this mission must start, that the Chancellor needs to write off crisis-era debts and protect those most at risk this winter, and that the Bill must cut energy prices for good by moving levies off electricity bills, breaking the link between gas and electricity prices and boosting consumer protections1.
Why it matters for households
The 27% year on year rise in gas prices from 1 October feeds directly into what households pay, because wholesale gas and electricity prices are the main driver of changes in the price cap and of standing charges and policy costs that sit on every bill1. The Coalition's proposals touch the same machinery: moving levies off electricity bills would shift policy costs and levies, and breaking the link between gas and electricity prices would change how electricity is priced against gas. For a household, the practical question raised by the polling is how exposed a home remains to a fuel whose price is set globally, and how much of its heating and power it can meet from sources not tied to that price. The sources do not report any government response to the polling or the letter, and no decision on an Emergency Heat Tariff has been reported1.
What happens next
The letter has been sent to the Chancellor ahead of the Budget, which the Coalition says is one of two points where its proposals must start, alongside the Energy Independence Bill1. Gas price forecasts point to a further spike in January1. No date has been reported for a Treasury response to the Emergency Heat Tariff submission or to the letter1.