Households energy bills could be cut by £165 a year under plan being drawn up by the Conservative Party, which would scrap the carbon tax on electricity generation and end subsidies for win farms.
These savings, which represent a reduction of around a fifth of the typical family's energy cost, were outlined by Shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho during the party's annual conference earlier today.
Ms Coutinho argued that removing the carbon tax would immediately reduce bills by nearly £8billion annually. The proposals form part of a broader Conservative energy strategy that includes dismantling Great British Energy and reversing the Climate Change Act.
The shadow minister claimed that current carbon taxes account for more than 30 per cent of gas power costs, unnecessarily inflating electricity prices across all generation methods.
Energy bills could supposedly be slashed under the Tories' plans
|GETTY / PA
Speaking at the conference, Ms Coutinho explained that while Labour's Energy Secretary Ed Miliband attributes high costs to gas prices, he supposedly fails to mention that carbon taxes constitute over 30 per cent of gas power expenses.
She stated: "The next Conservative Government will axe the carbon tax on electricity generation."
The shadow energy secretary argued that since Britain will require gas for power generation for many years, the tax merely increases costs without purpose.
Furthermore, she highlighted how the carbon tax mechanism affects pricing across the entire electricity market.
"Energy Owls" actively manage their energy usage, check tariffs, and track their bills. | Uswitch"The carbon tax inflates the cost of almost all other types of electricity too," Ms Coutinho said. "So, all the wind and solar farm owners pocket those higher prices as higher profits."
Tories have targeted wind farm subsidies established by Ed Miliband in 2008, which doubled support payments for wind energy projects.
Ms Coutinho described these subsidies as "the biggest racket going" and pledged to eliminate them entirely.
She explained that certain wind farms receive up to three times the market rate for electricity when generating power, with consumers bearing these inflated costs through their bills.
"Our energy system is not here to prop up the profits of multimillion-pound wind developers at billpayers' expense. It's here to deliver cheap, reliable energy for the country," she said.
The shadow energy secretary confirmed that whilst the previous Conservative government closed the subsidy scheme to new applicants, her party would now completely abolish existing arrangements.
Ms Coutinho announced plans to abolish Great British Energy, which she characterised as Ed Miliband's "vanity project" that costs £8billion yet generates no electricity.
"Only Ed Miliband could launch an £8billion energy company that won't produce any energy," she told conference delegates. The Shadow Energy Secretary noted that despite promises of "mind-blowing" bill reductions, these have failed to materialise.
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The Shadow Energy Secretary outlined the Conservative Party's plans for energy bills
| PAAdditional Conservative commitments include repealing the Climate Change Act, which Ms Coutinho argued no longer serves the national interest. The party would also reverse the ban on new oil and gas licences and eliminate the energy profits levy.
"As long as we need gas, as much as possible should come from Britain," she stated, emphasising Conservative support for North Sea energy production.
Labour has rejected the Conservative proposals, with a party spokesperson stating that the plans would replicate the energy policies that led to severe cost-of-living pressures during the previous Conservative administration.
The spokesperson argued that cancelling clean energy investments would increase Britain's dependence on volatile and costly fossil fuels, maintaining elevated bills for future generations.
They noted that the Conservative pledge to abolish the Climate Change Act had drawn opposition from business leaders, workers, faith groups and even Conservative politicians.
Energy sector analysis contradicts Conservative claims about renewable costs. Dr Simon Cran-McGreehin from the Energy & Climate Change Unit stated that wind and solar farms actually lower bills by reducing reliance on gas-fired power stations.
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