Energy: Prices

(asked on 24th March 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has plans to carry out an impact assessment on low income households on the increase of the OFGEM price cap.


Answered by
Anne-Marie Trevelyan Portrait
Anne-Marie Trevelyan
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This question was answered on 13th April 2021

The price cap is revised every 6 months so that it is consistent with the underlying costs of supplying energy to households. Determining efficient costs is inherently challenging, but this is the product of Ofgem’s wide-ranging and in-depth benchmarking exercise. The Government has complete confidence in Ofgem, as the independent regulator of the GB gas and electricity markets, to appropriately execute its expert judgement in this regard. Ofgem estimate that the average household is £75-£100 better off each year than if the price cap was not in place. Consumers on capped tariffs can save even more my shopping around for a cheaper tariff. In addition, the Government’s Energy Company Obligation (ECO) and expanded Warm Home Discount (WHD) schemes will provide at least £4.7 billion of extra support to low-income and vulnerable households between 2022 and 2026.

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