Power tariff increases will affect Blue Wall areas most

THE parts of the country that will be hit hardest by the rise in energy bills are traditionally Conservative-voting parts of “middle England”, analysis has found.

The local authorities where households will see the steepest increase in their payments are all in the South and South West, according to research by the Liberal Democrats.

Of the top 10 areas where bills will rise the most, half are in Surrey and the rest are in nearby counties of Kent, Essex, Hertfordshire and Berkshire.

“This is middle England – where people live in suburban houses and where buildings are older than the national average so insulation is poorer,” a Lib Dem source said.

“We are not talking about mansions, these are relatively modest three-bedroom houses where people who have always muddled through and paid their bills will now not be able to cope.”

They added that these are Blue Wall areas, where all but one currently have a Conservative MP. Families in Elmbridge, Surrey will see the steepest rise in electricity and gas bills – by £2,606 – followed by Tandridge, Mole Valley and Waverley where bills will rise by £2,490, £2,476 and £2,437 respectively.

The rest of the top 10 is Sevenoaks in Kent, Three Rivers in Hertfordshire, Surrey Heath in Surrey, Uttlesford in Essex, Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire and Brentwood in Essex.

The analysis used official figures on national average electricity and gas usage, and combined it with data from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on local authority and household consumption as well as energy regulator Ofgem’s announcement about the October price cap rise.

It comes after the Chancellor warned that middle-earners on salaries of £45,000 will need help to pay bills.

Nadhim Zahawi said that support cannot be confined to families on benefits and added that gas prices could remain punishingly high for two years.

“There are those who aren’t on benefits,” he said. “If you are a senior nurse or a senior teacher on £45,000 a year, you’re having your energy bills go up by 80 per cent and will probably rise even higher in the new year.”