‘Asleep at the wheel!’ Labour blast Boris after Ofgem director quits over price cap change
Ed Miliband grilled on Labour's energy plans by Paterson
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info
Christine Farnish, who has been a non-executive director at Ofgem since 2016, revealed she resigned from the regulator’s board as she did not believe they had “struck the right balance between the interest of consumers and the interests of suppliers”. The announcement comes just days after Ofgem announced it was changing the methodology of the cap.
The move will enable suppliers to recoup wholesale energy hedging costs sooner.
Ms Farnish claimed such a move would “add several hundred pounds to everyone’s bill in order to support a number of suppliers in the coming months”.
Following Ms Farnish’s resignation, Mr Miliband suggested Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party provided a solution compared to a Tory Government which is “asleep at the wheel”.
The Doncaster North MP said: “This is further proof that the Government is asleep at the wheel when it comes to the energy bills crisis.
JUST IN: Fury as Scottish nationalist ‘bullies’ hurl EGGS at pensioners in national ’embarrassment’
“For 12 years the Conservatives have totally failed to regulate the energy market.
“In no other country have 32 energy suppliers gone bust.
“We simply cannot allow the British people to suffer a further increase in bills.
“It is intolerable that the Conservatives continue to offer no solutions to this crisis, and oppose Labour’s plan.
“Labour’s fully-funded plan would fix the problems immediately and for the future.
“It would mean people not paying a penny more on their energy bills this winter, saving the typical household £1,000.
“Only Labour can give Britain the fresh start it needs.”
Boris Johnson has come under pressure to address the crisis.
However, the outgoing Prime Minister recently insisted “there is more money coming”.
Tory leadership hopefuls Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss have also faced calls to address the issue.
DON’T MISS:
Petty EU bullies have finally met their match in Liz Truss – COMMENT [OPINION]
Angela Rayner’s boyfriend launches COUP against Starmer with new plot [LATEST]
SNP spends £20MILLION on electric police cars… with no chargers [REPORT]
Ofgem responded to Ms Farnish’s resignation by thanking her for her “devoted service”.
They added: “Due to this unprecedented energy crisis, Ofgem is having to make some incredibly difficult decisions where carefully balanced trade-offs are being weighed up all the time.
“But we always prioritise consumers’ needs both in the immediate and long term.
“The rest of the board decided a shorter recovery period for energy costs was in the best interest of consumers in the long term by reducing the very real risk of suppliers going bust, which would heap yet more costs onto bills and add unnecessary worry and concern at an already very difficult time.”
Analysts at Investec estimated Ofgem’s change in method would add more than £400 to the level of the price cap in January – taking it to £4,200 a year compared to £1,971 at present.
Source: Read Full Article