23 June 2008
The government is hoping to tackle the current energy crisis in the UK, which has seen gas and electricity bills soar in recent months, by implementing a new strategy that will see more UK-based green power solutions. However, such a move may mean that energy bills will continue to become more expensive for consumers, the consultation paper has revealed. A new renewable energy strategy is to be announced by the government this week that will see the UK head towards an EU target which stipulates 15 per cent of its energy must come from green sources by 2020. In the short term this could mean consumers continue to pay more for fuel, according to the Guardian. The paper reports that the consultation paper states: "Our policies will add further to energy prices. The impact will increase as 2020 approaches. In the longer term … we might expect society's investment today to [lead to] prices that are lower than they would otherwise have been." Last week, uSwitch warned that many consumers will be crippled by predicted energy bill increases of 40 per cent during the remainder of 2008.