Britons at ‘breaking point’ – energy bills now biggest worry | Politics | News

Energy bills, Britons’ biggest cost-of-living concern, have now surpassed food prices. Less than three in 10 people say they can cope with an additional increase in bills. Two in five people say energy bills cause arguments at home, and this is true even for the wealthiest respondents. The proportion of Britons who see energy bills as their biggest concern has risen from two-thirds in August last year to almost three-quarters last month.

New research from More In Common shows energy bills are “stretching household finances to breaking point, straining family life and fueling support for Reform UK and the Greens”. Researchers found that rising costs ‘increase stress and anxiety’.

Four in five Britons are taking measures to manage rising costs, such as turning down heating, cutting back on holidays and spending less on going out. When asked to name their top three concerns about the cost of living, energy bills (73%) were cited most, followed by shopping and grocery prices (68%) and housing costs (36%).

It is claimed that high energy bills “make parenting difficult”, while one in three parents of young children say they experience “significant levels of stress and anxiety”. The research found that “women and middle-aged Britons are the hardest hit and are the most likely to have to change their lifestyles.” Even the wealthy are feeling the pressure, with 41% of those earning more than £100,000 claiming to argue with household members over their energy use.

Reform and Green voters are “most concerned about energy bills”. Forty-one per cent of those who voted Labor in 2024 but now support one of the two rebel parties reported stress and anxiety about their energy bills, compared to 31% of the population. Only 13% of green voters think they can afford the extra cost if energy prices rise further. This compares with 29 per cent of Reform voters, 37 per cent of Liberal Democrat supporters, 39 per cent of those planning to vote Tory and 44 per cent of Labor supporters.

A Green Party spokesman said: “This survey confirms what Green Party campaigners have been hearing on their doorstep: Households are at breaking point and energy bills are a major cause of financial distress. The underlying problem is our country’s continued exposure to volatile fossil fuel markets, leaving us highly vulnerable to global shocks.”

“To completely reduce bills, we must quickly invest in cheaper, cleaner and self-produced renewable energy.”

Conservative Shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho said: “Labour promised to cut energy bills by £300, but instead they have spiraled higher. The public are right to be skeptical; they have no plan.”

He said reducing taxes and duties “could reduce the average household energy bill by £200 and reduce electricity bills for all businesses by 20%”.

Camilla Born, of Electrify Britain, a campaign group backed by Octopus Energy and EDF, which conducted the research, said the findings showed why Britain needed to leave the age of oil and gas behind.

He said: “People are too used to seeing energy bills rising and want the government to eliminate high bills altogether. But unless we get British families off oil and gas, we’ll continue to feel the pain when paying for our heating and fueling our cars. The only long-term solution is to electrify everything.”

More in Common’s Luke Tryl warned that the “persistent crisis” on energy was creating disillusionment with the political system. He said: “Westminster tends to notice energy bills when it makes news and then moves on. “But for millions of families in Britain, this isn’t something that affects them in just one news cycle.

“This is a set of struggles that are a key driver of personal stress and, increasingly, the cause of arguments within the family.”