Lisa Nandy MP, Shadow Energy & Climate Change Secretary, responding to the findings of the CMA investigation into the energy market said:

“This investigation has confirmed that millions of families and businesses have been overcharged for their energy bills to the tune of billions of pounds yet energy companies are still being let off the hook. Tory Ministers have consistently failed to get to grips with this overcharging issue. It was four years ago when David Cameron promised to put all households onto the cheapest tariff. His broken promise has cost Britain’s families more than a billion pounds a year.

“This was a critical chance to shake up a broken energy market and make sure savings from falling wholesale prices are passed on to customers. Only more transparency and competition can deliver this. Right now it’s clear to nobody why some families pay hundreds of pounds more than others for their energy and these proposals won’t fix this. While a safeguard tariff for customers stuck on expensive pre-pay meters is welcome and will protect some households we will need to go much further to make sure bills are fair and go down faster for everybody else too.

“Some of these proposals could open the door to households being bombarded with nuisance phone calls and spammed with junk mail from companies who want their business. That would be a massive own goal, worsening trust in the energy companies and effectively blaming the public for failing to shop around.”