Energy crisis - live: Liz Truss issues hundreds of new oil and gas licences despite climate change

Households could face blackouts for up to three hours at a time this winter if gas power plants are not able to keep running due to the energy crisis, the National Grid has warned.

Though the it is unlikely, this year could see the first planned blackouts, which the grid calls “rota load shedding,” since the 1970s.

But prime minister Liz Truss has ruled out launching an energy-saving public information campaign, as she is “ideologically opposed” to an “interventionist” approach, according to The Times.

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On the prime minister’s decision to rule out an energy-saving campaign, Will Hodson, consumer champion and founder of How To Save It commented: “Blocking a campaign that encourages households to use less energy is dogmatic and dangerous.

“Given the government has put the taxpayer on the hook for every unit of energy used in the country, they have a duty to help us use less. This abdication of responsibility will undoubtedly increase the likelihood of blackouts.

“The simple truth is that using less energy is also the best way for households to lower their bills. I would urge the prime minister to rethink her strategy and be honest with the British people about the situation we are in.”

Nicola Sturgeon has said she is concerned the UK government is “undermining energy security” in the long-term.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, she said: “I worry right now that what we’re hearing from the UK government is just a continuation of their haphazard planning about energy and in the long-term what they’re doing is undermining energy security rather than strengthening it.”

A new licensing round for oil and gas exploration in the North Sea will be “good for the environment”, climate minister Graham Stuart has said.

The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) will begin the 33rd round of offshore licences, with the UK Government arguing increasing production will boost the economy and energy security.

“Our development is not going to affect our usage,” Mr Stuart said, “I know it sounds contradictory - but it’s actually good for the environment.”

But Green Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay said: “We can only hope to hold global warming to under 1.5C degrees if we leave fossil fuels in the ground.

“The Government’s claim that burning ever more fossil fuels from the North Sea will help the UK meet its international obligations to become net-zero by 2050 has no connection to reality - we truly have stepped through the looking glass.”

The Green Party also said any new production, even if fast-tracked, would not be available for years and so would not help to address the current crisis.

Licences are being made available for sectors of the North Sea - known as blocks - with the NSTA estimating more than 100 may be granted to encourage production of new gas and oil supplies.

Companies are being urged to apply for licences covering areas to the west of Shetland, in the northern North Sea, the central North Sea, the southern North Sea and east Irish Sea.

A total of 898 blocks and part-blocks are being made available - but in a bid to encourage production of new oil and gas supplies as quickly as possible, the NSTA has identified four “priority cluster areas” in the southern North Sea.

These areas - located off Norfolk, Lincolnshire and Yorkshire - are known to contain hydrocarbons and are close to existing infrastructure, giving them the potential to be developed quickly.

A minister has suggested the King can make his own decision on whether to attend an international climate conference in Egypt, amid reports that the Prime Minister advised the monarch not to attend.

Liz Truss reportedly objected to King Charles III attending Cop27, due to take place in Sharm el-Sheikh next month.

Speaking during a series of broadcast interviews on Friday morning, climate minister Graham Stuart said “where King Charles decides to go, I think is very much up to him”, but added that “ministers doubtless would advise”.

But Mr Stuart also said that he did not know if the report of the Prime Minister’s intervention was correct.

Buckingham Palace has confirmed that Charles will not be attending the international gathering, despite his long-standing commitment to environmental issues.

The Sunday Times reported that the decision not to go was taken after the Prime Minister raised objections during an audience with the monarch at the Palace last month.

“It’s been clear this is a decision that has been made consensually between the King and the Government,” Levelling Up Secretary Simon Clarke said earlier this week.

Any suggestion that the King was “ordered to stay away” are “simply not true”, Mr Clarke said.

Ms Stuart, asked when asked about the reports, said on Friday: “Where King Charles decides to go, I think is very much up to him.”

Asked again if the reports were correct, he said: “I don’t know.”

And then challenged over whether he as climate minister would like the King to go, Mr Stuart said: “I don’t think it’s for ministers ... to be telling the King what he should or shouldn’t do.”

Asked again about the reports when speaking on LBC, Mr Stuart said: “I don’t. I can’t comment on that.

“Whether the King, Charles, goes to Sharm (el-Sheikh)... would have thought would be up to him, although ministers doubtless would advise.”

Responding to news that the government is not telling people to reduce overall energy consumption, Friends of the Earth’s head of policy, Mike Childs, said: “The government could easily provide people with simple advice on how to cut energy use, for example by adjusting boiler controls, which would both help improve energy security and help cut harmful carbon emissions.

“Not helping people understand how to reduce energy use is another example of government failings on the energy crisis. Throughout 2022, basic insulation such as loft and cavity wall insulation could have been rolled out to the homes that need it most and all households offered independent energy saving advice.

“This would have cut energy bills, lowered gas consumption and reduced government spending on the energy price freeze.

“If we get blackouts this winter, the government’s woeful lack of early action and preparedness will be a key reason.”

Nearly a quarter of small businesses say that energy prices are their main concerns as insolvencies spiked to their highest level since the wake of the financial crisis.

The number of companies going insolvent in England and Wales has been rising since last year, and hit 5,629 in the second quarter of 2022.

When adjusting for the season, this pushed insolvencies to their highest level since the third quarter of 2009, amid the global financial crisis.

The rise has come after businesses were protected from insolvencies during the pandemic due to Government rule changes.

These rules were only temporary and were later reversed, paving the way for many collapses in the wake of the crisis.

Now businesses are facing a whole new set of challenges as their costs rise and under-pressure shoppers cut back their spending.

“Several factors are likely to have played a role in the recent rise in insolvencies, such as persistently high energy prices, difficulties in meeting debt obligations, rising costs of raw materials, and supply chain disruptions,” the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said on Friday.

Prime minister Liz Truss said tackling the energy crisis required increased production in the UK as she attempted to reassure the public the country “will get through this winter”.

In a string of tweets on Friday, she said: “We have taken decisive action to support households and businesses with their energy costs - and we’re working to make sure the United Kingdom is never in this position again by tackling the root cause of the energy crisis.

“That means producing more energy here at home.

“To secure our long-term energy supply and reduce reliance on authoritarian regimes, we’re accelerating our domestic energy production, including launching a new North Sea oil and gas licensing round.

“We’re also speeding up deployment of renewables including hydrogen, solar and wind.

“Yesterday I held discussions with our allies on progressing Sizewell C and building more nuclear power stations.

“We’re also working to get better prices for people now - our energy supply taskforce is negotiating new long-term agreements with gas suppliers.

“Together, we will get through this winter, grow our economy and secure our energy independence for the future.”

A survey by the statisticians found that 23% of businesses said that energy prices are their main concern in early October. This compared to 15% in February when bills had already been rising.

The survey also found that businesses with between 10 and 49 employees were the most worried about energy. Around 27% said that this was their primary concern.

“The price of energy is likely to remain a key concern for businesses, especially during winter months when energy usage for many businesses increases,” the ONS said.

Two weeks ago the Government announced a new programme to help businesses with their energy costs.

Under it, businesses will get some of their runaway energy costs covered by the Government.

Although it did not draw a direct link between bills and insolvencies, the ONS showed that the accommodation and food service sector saw unusually high levels of both.

Nearly 41% of respondents from the sector said that energy was their biggest worry, and 611 insolvencies were recorded in the second quarter - the highest since records began in 2012.