Latest news with #Ofgem
Telegraph
a day ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Miliband plots 15% net zero tax on gas bills
Ed Miliband is considering plans to overhaul green levies, which experts have warned would push up the average gas bill by £120 a year. The Energy Secretary is looking at removing the taxes that are applied to electricity as part of his plans to encourage more people to buy heat pumps. But he has admitted Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, would not cover the £4.8 billion-a-year cost, meaning the charges would likely have to be shifted on to gas bills. Ministers and Ofgem, the industry regulator, have spoken positively about the plans, which experts calculate would add 15 per cent to the cost of gas. Mr Miliband's department insisted that no final decision had been taken and dismissed the projections of how much bills would rise as 'speculation'. Under the proposals, subsidies for pensioners and households on benefits would be increased to cushion them from the impact of higher bills. Officials are likely to argue that the average household, which uses a mix of gas and electricity, would face no increase in overall bills as a result. That is because the levies would simply be shifted from their electric bill to their gas bill, with the cost balancing itself out overall. Homes with heat pumps would benefit most, saving £420 a year, but families who are heavily reliant on gas boilers and cookers could end up worse off. The plans emerged in a report drawn up by the Commons net zero committee, which is chaired by Bill Esterson, a Labour MP and former shadow minister. Backbenchers asked Mr Miliband and Miatta Fahnbulleh, his deputy, about calls from some campaigners to 'rebalance' the cost of gas and electricity. In transcripts released by the committee, the Energy Secretary said that there was a 'principled case' for removing levies from electricity. But he warned that the Treasury was unlikely to agree to picking up the cost of doing so, which has been projected at some £4.8 billion a year. 'There is a world where you transfer all the levies to public expenditure. No doubt all of us in our fantasy world would like that to happen,' he told MPs. 'It is billions of pounds of costs. I do not think it will surprise the Committee if I say that is unlikely to happen in the short term, given the fiscal situation that we face.' 'We need to proceed cautiously' Mr Miliband acknowledged that he was looking at proposals to transfer the levies to gas instead and that doing so would push up bills. He said that officials at his department were 'working through' where the costs would fall and how to mitigate them for the poorest households. 'You have 100 per cent of people, more or less, on electricity, and about 80 per cent of people on gas, so if you are transferring the 100 per cent to the 80 per cent, you then have a potential bills effect,' he said. 'I think the principled case for these levies not falling on electricity is clear. The practical solution to make it happen is more complicated, and in a world where we need to protect fairness. We need to proceed cautiously.' Ms Fahnbulleh, the Minister for Energy Consumers, said that the high price of electricity was pushing up the cost of running heat pumps. 'That is a problem for us because we need the running cost to be as cheap as, if not cheaper than, the cost of a gas boiler,' she told the committee. 'No doubt, when you speak to experts, they will all say that rebalancing needs to happen.' Jonathan Brearley, chief executive of the energy watchdog Ofgem, said there was a 'rationality' for shifting levies away from electricity. He said that it was 'the right thing to do from the perspective of getting to net zero' but that inevitably it would result in 'a lot of people losing out'. The revelations come after the climate change committee, which oversees net zero targets, told Mr Miliband to remove green levies from electricity bills. According to Nesta, a charity which promotes the uptake of heat pumps, the taxes make up 16 per cent of the cost of electricity and 5.5 per cent for gas. That means they add £140 to the typical electricity bill and £50 to the average gas bill. Mike Foster, chief executive of the Energy and Utilities Alliance, said Mr Miliband should be 'cautious' about adopting the proposals. 'We have seen in the debate around the Winter Fuel Allowance that changing household energy bills is politically risky,' he said. 'The political optics of seeing your gas bill increase by 15 per cent, for the 25 million households that use gas, to make using a heat pump that costs £13,000 to fit, £120 a year cheaper to run, may be a bridge too far at this time.' A spokesman for the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero said: 'This is speculation – no decisions have been made. 'We will repair our retail energy market and deliver real change, to ensure people have the best possible support to choose more affordable, smarter, clean energy that is right for them.' 'As long as Britain remains exposed to the roller-coaster of global fossil fuel markets, we will be vulnerable to energy price spikes beyond our control. 'That's why our clean energy mission is the best route to protect consumers and bring down bills for good. We will set out further details in due course.'
The National
a day ago
- Business
- The National
Scotland Gas Networks among firms to pay £8m in fines
Regulator Ofgem said Cadent Gas, Scotland Gas Networks and Southern Gas Networks have voluntarily agreed to pay the funds after missing their targets between 2022 and 2023. Ofgem's rules require companies which manage the gas network to attend reports of suspected gas leaks within one or two hours, depending on the incident, in 97% of cases. Southern Gas Networks will pay £5.8m, Cadent will pay £1.5m, and Scotland Gas Networks will pay £700,000. READ MORE: Scottish travel firm puts 10 buses up for auction after closing 'out of the blue' The cash will go into Ofgem's voluntary redress fund, which provides money for projects that support vulnerable energy consumers. Cathryn Scott, director of market oversight and enforcement at Ofgem, said: 'The potential risk to households and businesses if gas leaks aren't investigated quickly is significant, so it's right that the companies involved have acknowledged the seriousness of missing these targets. 'We're confident the companies have improved their systems and processes to make sure this doesn't happen again and have demonstrated their commitment to this by meeting their targets in the two years since the breach.' Ofgem said it opened an investigation into the three companies after they self-reported missing their targets.
Scottish Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Three gas companies penalised £8m for failing to attend emergencies on time
Companies maintain the gas network and must attend reports of any suspected leaks within one or two hours GAS BLAST Three gas companies penalised £8m for failing to attend emergencies on time Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THREE gas companies have been penalised £8million for failing to attend emergencies on time, potentially leaving customers at risk. Southern Gas Networks will pay £5.8million, Cadent £1.5million and Scotland Gas Networks £700,000. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up Companies maintain the gas network and must attend reports of any suspected leaks within one or two hours, depending on the circumstances. They must arrive in one hour for uncontrolled gas escapes and two hours for controlled leaks in at least 97 per cent of cases. Southern Gas Networks was handed the largest penalty after it missed the 97 per cent target by 5.1 per cent. Cadent was 1.8 per cent adrift, with Scotland Gas Networks 0.4 per cent. Energy watchdog Ofgem looked at their failure to hit targets between 2022 and 2023. The investigation covered Cadent's North London and North West regions, and the other distributors' Scottish and Southern areas. Cathryn Scott, Ofgem's director of market oversight and enforcement, said: 'The potential risk to households and businesses if gas leaks aren't investigated quickly is significant.' She said Ofgem won't hesitate to take action when companies fail to meet their obligations. The companies voluntarily agreed to pay the penalties. The cash will go into Ofgem's redress fund, which provides money for projects supporting vulnerable energy consumers. 1 Three gas companies have been penalised £8million for failing to attend emergencies on time, potentially leaving customers at risk Credit: Getty Residents evacuated after gas leak in Scots town sparks chaos HOME PLUNGE HOUSE sales plunged last month as changes to stamp duty hit first-time buyers, figures show. There were 64,680 sales in April — a third of the number in March. The figure was also well down on April last year, according to HMRC. From April 1, first-time buyers have paid stamp duty on homes above £300,000, down from £425,000. PETROL'S FALL AVERAGE petrol pump prices have fallen to their lowest level for almost four years, but experts predict they will not go lower. They reached 132.3p a litre on Thursday, down from about 135.5p in early April, according to the AA. But it said the impact of low oil prices remains 'disappointing and frustrating' for motorists. GOOD WEEK: DEBBIE Crosbie, boss at Nationwide, after the building society reported a 30 per cent leap in profits to £2.3billion. BAD WEEK: CHRIS Weston, boss at Thames Water, which was fined £122.7million for sewage spills and dividend breaches.
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Three gas companies penalised £8m for failing to attend emergencies on time
THREE gas companies have been penalised £8million for failing to attend emergencies on time, potentially leaving customers at risk. Southern Gas Networks will pay £5.8million, Cadent £1.5million and Scotland Gas Networks £700,000. Companies maintain the gas network and must attend reports of any suspected leaks within one or two hours, depending on the circumstances. They must arrive in one hour for uncontrolled gas escapes and two hours for controlled leaks in at least 97 per cent of cases. Southern Gas Networks was handed the largest penalty after it missed the 97 per cent target by 5.1 per cent. Cadent was 1.8 per cent adrift, with Scotland Gas Networks 0.4 per cent. Energy watchdog Ofgem looked at their failure to hit targets between 2022 and 2023. The investigation covered Cadent's North London and North West regions, and the other distributors' Scottish and Southern areas. Cathryn Scott, Ofgem's director of market oversight and enforcement, said: 'The potential risk to households and businesses if gas leaks aren't investigated quickly is significant.' She said Ofgem won't hesitate to take action when companies fail to meet their obligations. The companies voluntarily agreed to pay the penalties. The cash will go into Ofgem's redress fund, which provides money for projects supporting vulnerable energy consumers. 1 HOME PLUNGE HOUSE sales plunged last month as changes to stamp duty hit first-time buyers, figures show. There were 64,680 sales in April — a third of the number in March. The figure was also well down on April last year, according to HMRC. From April 1, first-time buyers have paid stamp duty on homes above £300,000, down from £425,000. PETROL'S FALL AVERAGE petrol pump prices have fallen to their lowest level for almost four years, but experts predict they will not go lower. They reached 132.3p a litre on Thursday, down from about 135.5p in early April, according to the AA. But it said the impact of low oil prices remains 'disappointing and frustrating' for motorists. GOOD WEEK: DEBBIE Crosbie, boss at Nationwide, after the building society reported a 30 per cent leap in profits to £2.3billion.
The Independent
2 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Three energy firms fined £8m by Ofgem for attending gas leaks late
Three gas distribution companies are paying a combined £8 million in penalties after failing to attend to some gas emergencies on time. Cadent Gas, Scotland Gas Networks and Southern Gas Networks all voluntarily agreed to pay the funds after missing their targets between 2022 and 2023, Ofgem said. The regulator said it opened an investigation into the three companies after they self-reported missing their targets. Ofgem 's rules require companies which manage the gas network to attend to reports of suspected gas leaks within one or two hours, depending on the incident, in 97 per cent of cases. Southern Gas Networks will pay £5.8 million to Ofgem's Energy Redress Fund, Cadent will pay £1.5 million, and Scotland Gas Networks will pay £700,000. The cash will go into Ofgem's voluntary redress fund, which provides money for projects that support vulnerable energy consumers. Cathryn Scott, director of market oversight and enforcement at Ofgem, said the 'potential risk to households and businesses if gas leaks aren't investigated quickly is significant, so it's right that the companies involved have acknowledged the seriousness of missing these targets'. 'We're confident the companies have improved their systems and processes to make sure this doesn't happen again and have demonstrated their commitment to this by meeting their targets in the two years since the breach. 'We take compliance with our rules incredibly seriously, and as demonstrated with this case, will not hesitate to take action when companies fail to meet their obligations across the board.'
