Families are told: You’ll have to wait for more bills help
‘Big bazooka’ bailout not enough
STRUGGLING families may have to wait until at least autumn for any more help with energy bills – by which time many thousands could have fallen into fuel poverty.
Boris Johnson said he hoped the £15billion aid package announced on Thursday by Chancellor Rishi Sunak would “get us through” until prices “start to abate”.
But with inflation nudging double figures, public sector pay restraint and yet more tax rises, it will not cover most people’s energy bills increase.
The package includes £650 from July for those on benefits and £400 off electricity bills from October.
Other measures involve two £325 payments for 8.3 million on benefits, including £300 for poorer pensioners and £150 for disabled people.
The PM claimed yesterday that the bailout was a “big bazooka”. But he went on to concede: “We’ve got to be absolutely clear with people it’s going to be difficult and the Government cannot solve every problem.”
He added: “It is a very, very substantial commitment to getting us through what will be still a bumpy time with the increase in energy prices around the world.
“What I think it will also help us do is get us through until I believe prices will start to abate and we will be in a much, much stronger position.”
Neither Downing Street nor the Treasury have ruled out more help in the Autumn Budget.
The price cap on annual energy bills, currently nearly £2,000, is set to hit £2,800 in October.
Analysts at Cornwall Insight say that even if the timing of the cap review was reduced from the current six months to three, it is still likely to be around £2,800 until the end of March at least.
Mr Sunak suggested further cash help will be less likely to be needed after that point because benefits and pensions are set to rise by September’s inflation figure which could be close to 10%.
He explained: “That is forecast to be much higher than the inflation people will actually experience next year.”
Asked if he would have to act again, he told the BBC’s This Morning: “We’re sitting here in May, we don’t know what energy bills will be next April. I think people can judge me by my actions over the past couple of years.
“I’ve always tried to be responsive to the situation that the country and the economy is experiencing and will always act like that.” In an interview with Martin Lewis, founder of the Money Saving Expert website, Mr Sunak insisted he did not time his bailout announcement to help the PM dodge scrutiny over Partygate.
He has faced repeated claims the measures were unveiled on Thursday as part of a strategy to shift the focus from rule-breaking in No10.
Mr Lewis asked whether the extra aid – £5bn of which will be paid for by a levy on oil and gas profits and £10bn by extra borrowing – was quickly unveiled as a “fig leaf ” after embarrassing details of raucous latenight lockdown parties were laid bare.
The Chancellor replied: “I can categorically assure you that that had no bearing on the timing.
“I can give you my absolute assurance and my word.
“The reason we acted was because we had more certainty about what will happen to energy prices in the autumn.”
Was aid a fig leaf over Partygate? You have my word it was not
MR SUNAK ON QUESTION EVERYONE’S ASKING