We have seen an unprecedented rise in energy prices following Putin’s illegal war in Ukraine, which has affected consumers up and down the country and businesses of all sizes.
Following on from the Prime Minister's announcement a fortnight ago capping domestic energy prices, yesterday we announced our Energy Bill Relief Scheme – providing all non-domestic users, including businesses, charities, schools and hospitals with a discount on wholesale gas and electricity prices worth up to half the price of expected energy prices this winter, giving business owners certainty on their bills until the end of March 2023.
This will apply to energy usage from 1 October 2022 to 31 March 2023, running for an initial 6 month period for all non-domestic energy users. During this initial period the Government will be conducting a review to identify the most vulnerable non-domestic customers and determine how the Government will continue assisting them with energy costs beyond the initial six-month period.
The savings will be first seen in October bills, which are typically received in November.
The measures to help households include the Energy Price Guarantee, which will give you certainty on prices. A typical household will not pay more than £2,500 per year. This will save a typical household £1,000 and is in addition to the £400 Energy Bill Support Scheme. You can find out more about the help here.
I was pleased to hear that the new Business Secretary, Jacob Rees-Mogg MP, agreed with me that Europe needs to avoid a crisis scenario such as this happening again. That is why this Government are maximising and diversifying our own sources of energy. I was also glad to learn that we are looking into adding to our capabilities to store energy.