Government fails to break energy link, markets react

We’ve been campaigning at Ecotricity for years to fix this broken system. It’s simple really; our electricity price is set by the most expensive form of generation, which is almost always gas. So even when we’re using cheap, homegrown green energy, we pay the gas price. Mad, right? We all know it is.

In 2023 alone, this link added £43 billion to energy bills. That’s not small change… that’s a massive transfer of wealth from households to energy companies. And it’s entirely avoidable. We laid it out clearly in our plan to break the link.

For a moment, it looked like the government might actually do something about it. There were hints, signals, a bit of noise. But when the announcement finally came… it was smoke and mirrors.

Instead of fixing the system, they’re tinkering at the edges. Only older renewable projects might be moved onto fixed prices, and even that won’t happen for a year. And even then… it’s voluntary. So we don’t even know how many will take it up. That covers about 30% of our electricity at best.

Here’s the thing… their own forecasts say this will reduce gas setting the price by just 10% in five years. Five years. Ten percent. That’s not reform… that’s delay dressed up as action.

And the markets saw straight through it. When investors thought real change was coming, energy company share prices dropped. When they realised nothing meaningful was happening… they bounced straight back. Says it all.

This is what a broken system looks like. Big business versus consumers… and right now, big business is winning. A million people were pushed into poverty because of this in 2023. That’s the human cost of political inaction.

We’ve seen this pattern before… talk big, do little, protect the status quo. But we don’t have time for that. Energy is central to everything… our bills, our economy, our carbon footprint.

If we’re serious about systemic change, we need to break the link properly. Not half measures. Not voluntary schemes. Just get it done.

The solution is there. The need is obvious. What’s missing is the will…:)