An eye-watering 80% rise in the energy price rise coming into force this winter has been confirmed.

The energy price cap will rocket to £3,549 on October 1, a move which will pile cost of living pressure on families. 

Consumers have been warned for several months that bills are going to keep climbing but the announcement will put further pressure on the government to announce new help.

Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi acknowledged that the energy price cap rise
‘will cause stress and anxiety for many people’ and insisted government ‘help
is coming’.

But with Boris Johnson effectively powerless and the Tory leadership election set to run for another 10 days, it is likely to be as much as another fortnight before a new policy is confirmed.

Ofgem, the energy regulator which sets the cap, admitted more financial aid would be needed to help families survive the blow.

Jonathan Brearley said: ‘The response will need to match the scale of the crisis we have before us.

‘With the right support in place and with regulator, government, industry and consumers working together, we can find a way through this.’

Wholesale energy costs have soared over the past 12 months as a result of the war in Ukraine and a post-pandemic surge in global demand.

The energy crisis is expected to last into next year and this energy price cap rise is by no means expected to be the last.

Ofgem has shifted to altering the cap every three months rather than six so another climb is on the cards for New Year’s Day.

Based on Wednesday’s gas prices, experts at consultancy Auxilione think the cap will reach £5,210 in January 2023 and £6,823 in April.

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Then it will fall, but only to £6,106 in July and £5,668 next October.

To put that in context, the current cap is  £1,971 and it stood at just £1,042 as recently as February 2020.

The government has previously announced funding for bill payers to be given a £400 discount on bills over six months from October, as well as further help for more vulnerable households.

But that policy was announced in May when experts thought the price cap would only reach £2,800 in October.

Liz Truss, the frontrunner to enter Number 10 next week, has committed to delivering ‘immediate’ and ‘decisive’ action on energy bills without giving specifics.

She said she was looking at assistance ‘across the board’ despite having previously focused on slashing taxes rather than ‘giving out handouts’.

Simon Francis of End Fuel Poverty Coalition, called the news a ‘dagger to the heart of millions of people up and down the country’ and accused the government of being ‘silent in the face of this looming disaster’.

Nearly half of Brits blame the government more than the energy firms for the energy crisis, according to a poll commissioned by the Cavendish Advocacy. 

Research by Focaldata of 1,021 adults from across the UK showed that 47% of respondents blame ministers for failing to prepare and prevent’ the huge rise.

Just under a third, 30%, condemn the energy firms.

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