E.on Boss Issues Stark Fuel Poverty Warning to Government
E.On UK CEO Michael Lewis has described the ongoing energy price rises as ‘unprecedented’, predicting that up to 40% of E.On’s customers will be in fuel poverty by October 2022.
Lewis called on the government to help. He called for ‘very substantial’ government intervention to help people with escalating fuel bills, which is one of the biggest factors in the cost-of-living crisis.
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Lewis said around one in eight E.On customers is already struggling to pay their bills, which will only worsen with the onset of winter, and the new energy price cap that’s due to come into force in October 2022.
Price cap record rise
The price cap for consumer bills hit a record rise last month – up from £1,277 to £1,971 a year. Today, the Chief Executive of Ofgem Jonathan Brearley stated that the energy cap would rise to at least £2,800 in October, coinciding with the winter months where energy use is at its highest.
A household is considered to be in fuel poverty if it has to spend 10% or more of its disposable income on energy.
Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said Rishi Sunak will look at all options:
We will review everything. We’ve got £22bn in the next 12 months of help to those people who need it the most.
Windfall tax
One of the options he refers to is to levy a windfall tax on oil and gas firms, to ease the burden on customers.
Lewis said the huge increase in the cost of gas, (which also drives up the price of electricity generation), is largely down to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, adding that double the number of households should be given the warm homes discount, and the rebate should go up from £140 to £600.
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