Britons on £45,000 will need help paying energy bills – not just those on benefits, chancellor says

Britons on £45,000 salaries will need government help to pay their energy bills – not only people on benefits, the chancellor has warned.

Nadhim Zahawi also told The Daily Telegraph that households must try and reduce their energy consumption, and that he fears gas prices could remain elevated for another two years.

Energy bills will soar for millions of families in the autumn after the price cap was increased to £3,549 a year – a record rise of 80%.

Every household in the UK is being given a £400 rebate on their energy bills, but Conservative leadership candidates Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak are being urged to take further action.

There has been debate over whether additional support should be distributed widely or concentrated on those with the lowest incomes.

Mr Zahawi told the newspaper: “My concern is there are those who aren’t on benefits. If you’re a senior nurse or a senior teacher on £45,000 a year, you’re having your energy bills go up 80% and will probably rise even higher in the new year – it’s really hard.”

Although Universal Credit is a “really effective way of targeting”, he said, other ideas are being explored “to make sure we help those who really need the help”.

Mr Zahawi is understood to have drawn up a series of options for the next prime minister to consider – and despite calls for urgent action from the energy regulator Ofgem, Ms Truss has said it would not be “right” to announce her full plans for tackling the cost of living crisis until a new Tory leader is named on 5 September.

The chancellor went on to warn that the UK is “in a national economic emergency”, adding: “This could go on for 18 months, two years, if Putin continues to use energy as a weapon.”

Source: Skynews