PM Liz Truss announces plans to support businesses with energy bills

Prime Minister, Liz Truss, has today (8 September) announced an energy plan to support the cost of living.

In a statement to the House of Commons, which was frequently interrupted by comments from backbenchers, Truss revealed that household (domestic) energy bills will be capped at £2,500 a year from October 2022.

This support will last for two years, while an energy supply taskforce negotiates long-term energy contracts with providers. This plan is in addition to the previously announced £400 energy bills discount, and will allegedly save the average household £1,000 a year.

Businesses are also getting a support package for six months which will provide ‘equivalent support’. After three months, it will be reviewed and further support will be targeted at industries considered to be vulnerable. The business secretary will work to make sure that those most in need receive support.

Truss commented: “I promised I would deal with the soaring energy prices faced by families and businesses across the UK and I am delivering on that promise.”

The PM stated that her government will not use a windfall tax to fund the energy price freeze, as it will ‘discourage the very investment we need to secure home grown energy supplies.’ The government will speed up the deployment of clean and renewable technologies, and sources of energy including North Sea oil and gas contracts for exploration.

New chancellor of the exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng, will set out the expected costs of the energy package in a fiscal statement soon.

“There are no cost-free options to dealing with the global energy crisis,” Truss revealed, and that to ‘defray’ the cost, the UK will need to ramp up supply.

Following the announcement, Richard Lambert, CEO at the National Hair & Beauty Federation (NHBF) commented:

“We’re pleased that the government has responded to our call for emergency energy support for hair and beauty businesses over the next six months. Businesses now urgently need clarity on the details of the scheme in order to help them to plan for the coming months.

“For the majority of hair & beauty businesses, energy is one of the two biggest overheads, so we will be pressing the government to consider hair and beauty as one of the ‘vulnerable industries’ that will be in most need of support after the initial six month period.

“We’ll look at the detail the full package when it’s announced. Meanwhile we are still calling for further support in the form of 100% business rates relief to help businesses with cash flow issues and the cost of doing business crisis from the fiscal statement later this month.”