Labour pledge to ‘extend’ windfall tax to protect families from soaring energy bills
Labour has pledged to extend the windfall tax on energy companies if they were to get into government, in a bid to help families from further increasing bills in April.
In a speech at the Fabian Society Conference today, shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to urge the government to stop the energy price cap rising this spring and warn that millions are under threat by the move.
The government has confirmed that, from April, energy bills will typically rise to £3,000 – while support offered to many individuals will become less generous as ministers try to grapple with the country’s finances.
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Ms Reeves is expected to say that the government is “underprepared” for the hardship that rising bills will cause many households resulting in a “crisis”.
Setting out Labour’s plan to ease the cost of living burden, she will say a Labour government would introduce a tougher windfall tax on energy companies.
The party argues this would help stop the energy cap rising by generating £13bn across 2022 and 2023.
Ms Reeves is expected to say that alongside a freeze on fuel duty, there should be a three-month moratorium on the forced installation of pre-payment meters.
While Labour would also introduce a new fund to “jump start” insulation.
“Millions of households are still looking to a 40% increase in their energy bills, in April,” Ms Reeves will tell the conference.
“On a week when temperatures fell below zero, I know many families and pensioners will be feeling the pressure particularly acutely.
“And at the same time, energy companies continue to enjoy record profits. That cannot be right.”
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‘UK lurching from crisis to crisis’
Ms Reeves will outline Labour’s plans for off-grid households to be offered equivalent support, with funding available for Northern Irish households too.
She will also set out her party’s long-term strategy of reaching 100% clean power by 2030 and retrofitting millions of homes.
Labour say this could save households £1,400 a year.
Read more: What’s a windfall tax, how much do oil companies already pay, and has UK tried it before?
“Sticking plaster politics is not enough”, Ms Reeves will say.
“We cannot persist with walking into a crisis unprepared, and at the last minute producing hugely expensive fixes to get us through, while the underlying problems – those weakened foundations – remain untouched.”
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Why do shell profits matter?
She will say: “We would hold to that most basic of principles.
“That those who have profited from the windfalls of war should shoulder their share of the cost, so ordinary people do not have to bear the brunt of a crisis that they did not cause.
“We will extend the windfall tax, closing the fossil fuel investment loophole, and taxing oil and gas profits at the same rate as Norway.
“By backdating this from the start of 2022 – when oil and gas giants were already making historically large profits – we can raise more than £13bn.”
At least 36 people have been killed after a fire engulfed several buildings at a high-rise residential complex in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong leader John Lee said another 279 people were reported missing. He said 29 people remained in hospital.
About 900 people have been evacuated to temporary shelters after the blaze – Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in years – broke out at the Wang Fuk Court housing complex in the city’s Tai Po district.
Three men have since been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, broadcaster RTHK reported.
Pics: AP
Meanwhile, fire chiefs said the high temperatures were making it challenging for crews to mount rescue operations.
Mr Lee said the fire was “coming under control” shortly after midnight.
The blaze was upgraded to a level 5 alarm, the highest level of severity, as night fell.
Pics: AP
The dead included one firefighter, officials said earlier.
A number of other firefighters were said to have been hurt while trying to tackle the flames as they ripped through the 31-storey towers.
Pic: Reuters
Pic: AP
Records show the Wang Fuk Court site consists of eight blocks, with almost 2,000 apartments housing around 4,800 residents, including many elderly people. It was built in the 1980s and has recently been undergoing a major renovation.
Pic: Reuters
Pic: Reuters
The fire, which broke out at 2.51pm local time, had spread on bamboo scaffolding and construction netting set up around the exterior of the complex.
It was not known how the fire started, but officials said it began on the external scaffolding of one of the buildings before spreading inside and to nearby buildings, likely aided by windy conditions.
Pic: Reuters
Pic: Reuters
Flames and smoke were still pouring out of many windows as night fell.
Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed condolences to the firefighter who died, and extended his sympathies to the families of the victims, according to state broadcaster CCTV. He also urged an “all-out” effort to minimise casualties and losses.
The UK’s foreign secretary described the fire as “truly devastating and deeply depressing”. Yvette Cooper said: “The UK sends heartfelt condolences to all the families affected and to the people of Hong Kong.”
Tai Po is in the northern part of Hong Kong, and close to the border with the mainland Chinese city of Shenzhen.
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Bamboo scaffolding is a common sight in Hong Kong at building construction and renovation projects.
However, the government said earlier this year it would start phasing it out for public projects because of safety concerns.
The blaze is the deadliest fire in Hong Kong since the deaths of 41 people in a commercial building in Kowloon in November 1996.
That fire was later found to have been caused by welding during internal renovations, with a public inquiry yielding sweeping updates to building standards and fire safety regulations in the city’s high-rise offices, shops and homes.
Two military personnel who were shot near the White House in Washington DC have died.
A suspect has been taken into custody and the area secured, police said.
The White House was placed into lockdown, while US President Donald Trump is away in Florida.
Washington DC shooting latest updates
Pics: AP
Mr Trump initially posted on his Truth Social platform to say the two National Guardsmen had been “critically wounded”, adding that the “animal” that shot them “is also severely wounded, but regardless, will pay a very steep price”.
But West Virginia’s governor said both victims were members of his state’s National Guard and had died from their injuries.
Patrick Morrisey added: “These brave West Virginians lost their lives in the service of their country. … Our entire state grieves with their families, their loved ones, and the Guard community. West Virginia will never forget their service or their sacrifice, and we will demand full accountability for this horrific act.”
Pic: AP
Police tape cordoned off the scene, while agents from the US Secret Service and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were on the scene, as National Guard troops stood sentry nearby.
Emergency personnel cordon off an area near where National Guard soldiers were shot. Pics: AP
The Joint DC Task Force confirmed it was responding to an incident in the vicinity of the White House.
The DC Police Department posted on X: “Critical Incident: MPD is on the scene of a shooting at 17th and I Street, NW. Please avoid the area.”
In an update, the force said: “The scene is secured. One suspect is in custody.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “The White House is aware and actively monitoring this tragic situation.
“The president has been briefed.”
Mr Trump was at his resort in Palm Beach ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, while US vice president JD Vance was in Kentucky.
Flights arriving at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport were temporarily halted due to its proximity to the scene of the shooting, the US Federal Aviation Administration said.
Hundreds of National Guard members have been patrolling the nation’s capital after Mr Trump issued an emergency order in August, which federalised the local police force and sent in the guard from eight states and the District of Columbia.
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