Chancellor met with business leaders
today at the Treasury.
He confirmed that the Treasury will announce the conclusion of
the review of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme in the House of
Commons next week, which will outline
support for businesses when the current six month scheme ends in
March 2023.
The Chancellor praised the resilience of the business community
in the face of an unprecedented increase in energy prices, caused
by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Government has protected businesses this winter from these
high energy costs through the £18 billion Energy Bill Relief
Scheme - one of the most generous support packages in Europe.
However, no Government can permanently shield businesses from
this energy price shock.
The Chancellor was clear that this level of support is
unsustainably expensive and that the current scheme was always
time limited to six months.
Extending the scheme at current levels could cost tens of
billions of pounds, with costs potentially doubling or tripling
if international energy prices increase further than expected. It
is vital that taxpayer’s exposure to volatile international
energy prices is reduced.
However, the Chancellor also heard the concerns of the business
community who are facing high energy prices and explained that
any future support, while at a lower level, would be designed to
help them transition to the new higher price environment and
avoid a cliff edge in support.
Notes to editors
List of business representatives:
- Confederation of British Industry
- Federation of Small Businesses
- British Chambers of Commerce
- Institute of Directors
- Make UK
- UKHospitality
- British Beer & Pub Association
