The forecast comes as the bill limit jumps by 54%, adding an average of 3 693 per year to the cost for those with pre-selected invoices. Some major energy supplier sites collapsed on Thursday as customers struggled to submit cash counts before the increase. Users reported that they could not access the sites of energy giants such as British Gas, SSE, E.ON and EDF. Rising prices will double the number of households in “fuel stress” – a condition for those who spend 10 percent or more of their income after the cost of housing on energy bills – overnight from 2.5 to 5 million only in England, according to the Resolution Foundation think tank. The figures reflect Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s recent intervention to mitigate the impact. With the price ceiling expected to rise sharply again later this year, the think tank said another 2.5 million households could fall into “fuel pressure” in the autumn unless more support is provided, bringing the total to 7. 5 million. This is based on an estimated increase of £ 500 in the price ceiling on 1 October. The shadow secretary of climate change, Ed Miliband, hit the prime minister and Sunak for not doing more to help. “On a day when energy bills are rising by a record amount for millions of families, it is a shame that Boris Johnson and Richie Sunak are refusing to go further to support the British people in the face of a cost-of-life crisis,” he said. “It tells you everything you need to know about this government in which it stands while workers, families and retirees suffer.” In early February, Mr Sunak announced a 350 350 support plan – through a 150 150 tax deduction and a 200 200 repayment deduction – for each of the “vast majority of households” to remove the “sting” from the rise. However, there are growing concerns among some Tory lawmakers that the chancellor’s lack of new measures for poorer households could negatively affect the May local elections. “There is such a deep problem of looking deaf when trying to garner support,” said a senior Conservative MP. “People are starting to see their neighbors tightening their belts and the demand relying on local charities,” they added. “The spring statement failed to help the poorest,” another Tory lawmaker told The Independent. “It also failed to keep taxes low. The reduction in fuel consumption has also been swallowed, judging by the experience of most drivers. No one feels victorious when trying to sell high taxes and little [financial] support.” April 1 is the peak of the “sharp” wave of cost of living, according to the Resolution Foundation, as the rise in the price ceiling is combined with other cost pressures in the economy to push inflation to a 40-year high. Mr Sunak’s efforts to alleviate the financial shock from energy bills through city tax cuts will cost more than half a million of the poorest households, he warned. Jonathan Marshall, senior economist at the Resolution Foundation, said: “Another increase in energy bills this autumn is accelerating the need for more immediate support, as well as a clear, long-term strategy to improve home insulation, boost electricity generation. energy from renewable sources and nuclear energy. and reforming energy markets so that household energy bills are less dependent on world gas prices. “ Johnson told lawmakers on March 9 that he would work out an energy independence plan for the country in the coming days. However, an energy strategy has not yet emerged and it is unclear when it will be published. The Treasury Department has resisted some of the long-term costs. Ofgem, which regulates the UK gas and electricity markets, announced on 3 February that the energy price cap – designed to prevent businesses from making excessive profits – would be raised by around 22 million customers by on April 1st. The regulator estimates that means that the average household with the fixed-rate bills it pays through a standing order will see an increase of 3 693 1. to 97 1,971 £ per year for gas and electricity. There will be an increase of £ 708 from £ 1,309 to £ 2,017 per year for the average prepaid customer. Ofgem said the increase was “driven by record increases in world gas prices over the past six months”. Low temperatures are expected to hit as the price ceiling begins to rise. Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan said: “People are going to wake up [on Friday] at temperatures just below zero, -1C or -2C in most of England and Wales for example, but by the afternoon we will see temperatures at 8C or 9C. “ He added: “Once again, on Friday night, we will see temperatures drop well below zero across the UK and in the early hours of Saturday morning, possibly to -4 C, -5 C and even south England”. The government “has no doubt” that rising energy prices “will be a major challenge for the majority of the British public”, No. 10 said on Thursday. The prime minister’s spokesman stressed the support of the government and said: “We will encourage anyone interested to make sure that they benefit from the support available to them.”
