Ed Miliband – 2021 Comments on Bulb Going into Administration

The comments made by Ed Miliband, the Shadow Business Secretary, on 23 November 2021.

The collapse of energy suppliers is a direct consequence of a decade of Conservative inaction in government which has left us exposed and vulnerable as a country. Families hit by a cost of living crisis will be deeply worried about what this collapse means for them, as will the workers at Bulb.

The Business Secretary has buried his head in the sand for too long. The Government was warned by Ofgem over a year ago about ‘systemic risk to the energy supply sector as a whole.’

Instead of action we’ve had complacency from Ministers and they are making the cost of living crisis worse by raising national insurance and refusing to cut VAT on energy bills.

Labour will scrutinise the special administration regime to ensure it protects bill-payers and secures value for money for taxpayers. But alongside those measures, the Government should now remove VAT from domestic gas and electricity bills for six months, so that families have some respite during the winter, and roll out a national home insulation plan to reduce energy bills by £400 and cut emissions.