Help is coming for millions struggling with energy bills, writes Ed Miliband

I know many LBC readers, like millions of others up and down the country, have seen their monthly budgets squeezed by soaring costs.

My number one priority as Energy Secretary is to tackle the energy affordability crisis.

That is why the government has decided to give an extra 2.7 million families £150 off their energy bills this winter.

This week letters will start dropping on the doorsteps of those receiving the discount.

We have ended previous restrictions so that every billpayer on means-tested benefits will get this much needed support.

Thanks to the changes we have made, one in five families will now get money off their bills this winter.

But we know we need to tackle the long-term driver of this crisis too.

The truth is energy bills are so high because Britain remains stuck on the rollercoaster of international fossil fuel markets - with wholesale gas costs for households still 75% higher than during the year before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

That is why we are taking back control from the dictators and petrostates with record investment in renewables and nuclear.

We are determined to protect the British people now and for the long term: supporting families with the immediate struggles they face, as we build an energy system that can bring down bills for good.

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Ed Miliband is the Energy Secretary.

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