Energy price cap announcement shows intervention is necessary - The Yorkshire Post says

This year people will be going into the winter minus the package of support measures introduced by the Government last year. When the Government’s Energy Price Guarantee which kept the average household’s bill at £2,500. In addition, the Government was also paying around £66 per month towards each household’s energy bill.

Therefore it is tone-deaf for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to suggest that the Ofgem energy price cap announcement is “really good news” for families. Many will be worse off than they were last winter.

Clearly it would not be feasible to roll out blanket support once again given the fiscal difficulties the country faces. But the Government should be looking for targeted support for the most vulnerable - pensioners who risk freezing in their own homes, families that are having to go hungry for fear of turning on the oven.

It’s a concern when Citizens Advice warns that the next few months will push vulnerable households over the edge.

Even Ofgem’s chief executive Jonathan Brearley says “we know people are struggling with the wider cost-of-living challenges and I can’t offer any certainty that things will ease this winter”.

What this price cap announcement reinforces is the need for fundamental reform of the energy market.

Ordinary people who are struggling face the brunt of the price rises while energy companies continue to roll in profits. It is the sort of situation where strong Government intervention is needed for the greater good of the nation.