Energy bosses to meet UK minister on fuel debts; City regulator ‘concerned’ over life insurance market

Key events

Energy debt in Great Britain at record levels – industry boss

Energy debt levels across Great Britain’s households are at their worst level since the start of the crisis prompted by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, according to the head of the energy industry’s lobby group.

Emma Pinchbeck, chief executive of Energy UK, said she was concerned about how households would fare over winter.

While energy prices have fallen from their peaks, debt has built up over the two years since. She told BBC Radio 4:

We’ve been very worried. We’ve got record levels of debt. It’s if anything worse than at any other time in the crisis.

She said Labour should “move a portion of the policy costs off electricity bills into general taxation to rebalance some of the costs between electricity and gas”. At the moment electricity prices are set in line with gas markets, and “policy costs” which are aimed at stimulating green energy investments are the same across both types of energy use.

Labour should also double the warm homes discount, Pinchbeck said. The benefit is now a one-off £150 discount from electricity bills for those who receive pension credit or those on low incomes with high energy costs.

The Labour government needs a plan for “enduring support” for energy bills, according to the head of a lobby group for the industry.

Emma Pinchbeck, chief executive of Energy UK, told BBC Radio 4 that she backed Labour plans to increase the proportion of renewables powering Britain, which the government hopes will cut bills, but added that consumers will need support before those hoped-for benefits feed through.

She also defended the retail energy sector against accusations that it is making big profits while consumers struggle.

I completely understand why people would think that way given the reports of big profits elsewhere in the sector particularly in oil and gas production. But it’s important that people understand that the retail sector doesn’t make huge profits.

She said that some companies do make “small profits”, but that depends on them running efficient businesses.

In most of the time I’ve been doing this job they’ve been losing money. That’s because they’re exposed to the high gas prices that everyone else is, and they buy gas to sell to customers. Under the price cap they are limited in the profits they make.

The FTSE 100 has edged up by 0.1% in the first few minutes of trading.

There are very few big movers. B&Q owner Kingfisher is down by 1.8% after Citi downgraded its expectations for its shares.

Here are the opening snaps from across Europe, via Reuters:

EUROPE’S STOXX 600 UP 0.2%
BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 UP 0.2%; GERMANY’S DAX UP 0.3%
FRANCE’S CAC 40 UP 0.3%; SPAIN’S IBEX UP 0.2%
EURO STOXX INDEX UP 0.3%; EURO ZONE BLUE CHIPS UP 0.3%

Energy bosses to meet minister over fuel debts; regulator concerned over life insurance

Good morning, and welcome to our live, rolling coverage of business, economics and financial markets.

UK energy bosses are due to meet the minister whose brief includes fuel poverty and energy consumer issues, amid scrutiny on the government and industry ahead of a winter during which support for some pensioners has been withdrawn.

Miatta Fahnbulleh was elected MP for Peckham in July. She was formerly the chief executive of the New Economics Foundation, a left-wing thinktank, but now she has the ministerial brief of looking after energy consumers, including fuel poverty.

That role has been thrust into the spotlight early in the Labour government’s term, after chancellor Rachel Reeves limited the winter fuel allowance to those eligible for pension credit. The benefit was previously applied universally, but some Labour MPs have said they are worried about pensioners just above the threshold.

Executives from Centrica, EDF, E.On, Octopus Energy, Scottish Power, Good Energy, Rebel Energy, Ovo, So Energy, Ecotricity and Utility Warehouse are expected at the roundtable event with Fahnbulleh. Industry body Energy UK, the regulator Ofgem, and Citizens Advice will also attend.

Financial regulator to look at life insurance market

The UK’s City regulator has launched an investigation into insurers over concerns that the market for life insurance and income protection is not working well.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that it would look at “pure protection” products, which pay out if the policyholder dies or is incapacitated due to illness or injury.

The regulator will look at “potential conflicts of interest in the structure of commission”. It will look specifically at four products: term assurance, critical illness cover, income protection insurance and whole of life insurance, including policies for over 50s that offer guaranteed acceptance.

Sheldon Mills, executive director of consumers and competition at the FCA, said:

Pure protection can offer peace of mind and financial security, often when people are at their most vulnerable. Consumers should be able to buy products which meet their needs and provide fair value.

We have seen indications that this may not be the case across the pure protection market and we will act if we find that the market is not working well.