Ofgem energy price cap falls – but average household bills still expected to rise
The energy regulator has reduced the cap on the amount energy companies can charge customers but bills are still expected to increase.
Ofgem has today announced the cap on the amount typical households pay on electricity and gas bills will drop to £3,280 from 1 April.
It’s a decrease from the previous cap of £4,279 effective from the beginning of January to the end of March and reflects the fall in wholesale energy prices.
Cost of living – latest: Warning energy bill rises will be ‘hammer blow’ to households
The price cap sets a maximum amount suppliers can charge per unit of energy and is regularly reviewed by Ofgem.
The amount is not the maximum that can be charged – customers using a lot of energy will have higher bills – but instead reflects typical usage levels.
Households had been protected from the previous high price cap due to the government’s energy price guarantee (EPG) which capped the energy unit price resulting in an average household bill of £2,500.
But bills are now likely to rise as the EPG threshold will increase to £3,000 for an average household from 1 April. Even with the £500 reduction in the price cap, the scheme will cost an estimated £26.8bn.
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‘Energy price increases are killing people’
As a result, the average home can likely expect bills to rise by an estimated 20%, an increase of £500 a year, according to energy consultancy Cornwall Insights as households absorb the gap between Ofgem’s price cap and the EPG.
Prices are to rise even further when the end of the £400 energy rebate scheme is factored in, Dr Craig Lowrey, the principal consultant at Cornwall Insight, said.
“Regrettably the forecast for April looks set to leave the price cap above the increased energy price guarantee level.
“While tumbling cap projections are a positive, unfortunately, already stretched households will be seeing little benefit before July.”
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Under the rebate scheme, six instalments of about £66 were paid monthly to bill payers from October.
Commenting on the high bills, the Ofgem chief executive said, a social tariff which offers lower energy prices for vulnerable customers should be urgently examined.
“A very tough time for many households across Britain”
“Where people are struggling, we urge them to contact their supplier to make sure they are getting all the help and support they are entitled to,” Jonathan Brearley said.
“We also think that, with bills continuing to be so high, there is a case for examining with urgency the feasibility of a social tariff for customers in the most vulnerable situations.”
There is some good news ahead, Mr Brearley suggested, but prices are still not going to fall to the levels seen in the last 18 months.
“Today’s announcement reflects the fundamental shift in the cost of wholesale energy for the first time since the gas crisis began, and while it won’t make an immediate difference to consumers, it’s a sign that some of the immense pressure we’ve seen in the energy markets over the last 18 months may be starting to ease,” he said.
The pressure, however, will not be removed entirely.
“Prices are unlikely to fall back to the level we saw before the energy crisis,” he said.
“Even with the extensive package of government support that is currently in place, this is a very tough time for many households across Britain.”
Spending on the EPG will effectively be zero from July until the end of 2023 as Ofgem’s energy price cap is expected to fall below the guarantee, according to Cornwall Insights.
Ofgem’s July and October caps are forecast to be below £3,000. Such caps would mean there is no price difference in amounts charged by energy companies and what customers pay.
Liverpool have won the Premier League title after a 5-1 victory over Tottenham at Anfield.
Arne Slot’s men did it in impressive style, turning over Spurs in a convincing win.
It was a rocky start for the Reds after Dominic Solanke put the north London side ahead.
However, fortunes quickly changed in the first half as Liverpool scored three times without a response.
Captain Virgil van Dijk (centre) celebrates. Pic: Reuters
Salah on his knees in celebration after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott (below) and Jarell Quansah celebrate after full-time. Pic: PA
Slot cheers after the full-time whistle. Pic: AP
In the second half, it took until the 63rd minute for Mohamed Salah to make it 4-1 before a fifth followed.
The Reds have won the title in manager Arne Slot’s first season in charge, and move level with fierce rivals Manchester United on 20 league championships.
But it makes them arguably the most successful English club ever as they have won more European Cup or Champions League titles.
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk told Sky Sports after the final whistle: “It’s special and it’s something that we don’t take for granted. It’s amazing.
“A lot of emotions before the game, during the whole week, but we got the job done and we (are) truly deserved champions of England. (Liverpool is) the most beautiful club in the world and I think we deserve all of this. Let’s enjoy the next couple of weeks and let it sink in.”
Liverpool’s Kostas Tsimikas poses with a Premier League trophy cut out. Pic: Reuters
Manager Arne Slot and his team after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Slot took over last summer from Jurgen Klopp, who guided them to their previous and maiden Premier League title triumph in 2020, when the COVID-19 lockdown saw matches played behind closed doors.
He is the first Dutch manager to win the Premier League and the fifth man to do so in a debut campaign after Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Manuel Pellegrini, and Antonio Conte.
Speaking to Sky Sports he said: “They [the players] did an outstanding job today. The main job was to win. Everyone said we had got it already. But we had to make sure and we got over the line.”
Several players, including Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, and Mohamed Salah, played leading roles in both the 2025 and 2020 campaigns.
Van Dijk and Salah recently signed new contracts extending their careers at the club.
Mohamed Salah takes a selfie with fans after scouring the fourth Liverpool goal. Pic: AP
Fans at Anfield during the game. Pic: AP
Fans in the stands at Anfield before full-time. Pic: Reuters
Liverpool will have to wait until the final game of the season – at home to Crystal Palace on 25 May – to be presented with the Premier League trophy.
It will be the first time the club’s fans will have seen their side lift the top-flight title in person since 1990.
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Two pro-Palestinian demonstrators have thrown red powder on Tower Bridge – just moments before leading runners in the London Marathon went past.
The protesters were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and remain in custody, said the Metropolitan Police.
A video shared by Youth Demand, which is calling for a trade embargo on Israel, shows two people jumping over a barrier that separates spectators from the race course.
The pair, wearing t-shirts that say “Youth Demand: Stop Arming Israel”, are then seen standing in the middle of the road on the bridge.
Pic: LNP
They throw red powder in the air as an official marathon car goes past displaying the race time.
A motorbike with a cameraman on board continues along the route, while a second motorbike stops and one of the riders gets off and pushes the pair out of the way, just before the men’s elite runners pass.
Several police officers then jump over the barrier and detain the pair, the footage shows.
There appeared to be no impact on the marathon.
More than 56,000 participants were expected to take part in the 26.2-mile race through the capital.
Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the men’s elite race in a time of two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa shattered the women’s-only world record in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.
Assefa beat the previous best of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set last year in London by Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir.
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Pic: LNP
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “At around 10.38am, two protesters from Youth Demand jumped over barriers at Tower Bridge and threw red paint on to the road.
“Marathon event staff intervened to remove the protesters from the path of the men’s elite race which was able to pass unobstructed.”
The force added that they were “quickly supported by police officers who arrested the protesters on suspicion of causing a public nuisance”.
The Met said the paint “appeared to be chalk-based” and was not expected to “present a hazard to runners yet to pass this point”.
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