In a major U-turn, Rishi Sunak has announced that he will impose a windfall tax on the profits of oil and gas companies to fund measures to help people struggling with the cost of living crisis.
Labour’s Lisa Nandy warned had that any measures must be targeted to help struggling households and suggested the chancellor’s announcement on Thursday could in part be intended to “distract” from Sue Gray’s Partygate report.
But government minister Steve Barclay insisted the move was in response to a warning from Ofgem chief executive Jonathan Brearley that the energy price cap will increase by a further £830 to £2,800 in October.
As he began his statement to MPs by noting that high inflation was causing “acute distress” for people in the country, Mr Sunak was heckled with shouts of “what took you so long” and “about time”.
