Theresa May lays out plan for state to control energy prices

The Conservative manifesto will include plans for price controls on energy bills, Theresa May has confirmed.

The policy, a watered-down version of the energy price freeze announced by Ed Miliband before the 2015 general election, would limit the rate at which energy tariff rates can rise.

The Prime Minister said the policy was part of her pledge to “step in when markets aren’t working, or take action when people are being taken advantage of”.

The Conservatives say they hope the policy will save households on bad energy tariffs up to £100 each.

Labour said the policy was “desperate stuff” while the Lib Dems said it was “never a good idea to copy the economic strategy of Ed Miliband”.

The Conservatives argue their policy is different to Mr Miliband’s because it limits the speed at which prices can rise rather than freezing them. However, the Conservatives described a similar policy to limit the speed of rent rises unveiled by Labour as “Venezuelan-style” price controls.

Former Labour leader Mr Miliband had pledged to step in and completely freeze energy prices for two years while the energy market was reorganized to be more competitive.

“It is clear to me that the energy market is not working for ordinary working families. Too many people simply aren’t getting a fair deal,” Ms May wrote in an article for The Sun.

“So I am making this promise: if I am re-elected on June 8, I will take action to end this injustice by introducing a cap on unfair energy price rises.

“It will protect around 17 million families on standard variable tariffs from being exploited with sudden and unjustified increases in bills.

“The cap will be set by the energy watchdog Ofgem and will help close the gap between standard tariffs and the cheapest deals.”

Rebecca Long-Bailey, Labour’s shadow business and energy secretary said: “This is desperate stuff from the Tories, re-announcing something they tried to get a headline for just a fortnight ago. But just as when they announced it last time, there’s still no proper detail nor any real commitment to helping working people.

“When the Tories say they’ll ‘cap’ bills, the question they need to answer is whether they can guarantee bills won’t go up for people next year – that’s the real test. A cap suggests a maximum amount that can be charged, not a promise that bills won’t go up year on year.

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“The reality is that the Tories aren’t offering anything for working people. Their record is one of failure and broken promises, letting ordinary people down at every turn. Over and over they’ve promised to get bills down but under them households are almost £900 worse off due to increase energy bills since 2010.

"Only Labour can be trusted to deliver a country for the many rather than just the few. All the Tories offer is broken promises and a record which has seen working people worse off."

Former Lib Dem and Coalition energy secretary Ed Davey said: “It is never a good idea to copy the economic strategy of Ed Miliband. As the Conservatives pointed out at the time, this will damage investment in energy when it is needed more than ever.

“The reason the Conservatives feel forced into this now is because they have utterly failed to help people lower their bills by improving energy efficiency.

“The hard Brexit chosen by Theresa May will cost jobs and push prices up even higher. Already the Brexit squeeze means the average family is set to be £500 worse off this year.

“The Liberal Democrats are the only party that can challenge Theresa May and provide the strong opposition Britain needs.”