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Energy Bill

The result of the consultation was that people are more concerned than anything else about knowing the historic cost of the fuel bills that they have to pay. One can of course see the attractions of the amendment in terms of increasing transparency for consumers in relation to the costs of so-called green taxes. I am happy to announce that the department will continue to work with suppliers and consumer groups, such as the new National Consumer Council, which succeeds Energywatch later this year, and other relevant organisations over the coming months, to investigate whether there are ways in which this type of information can be made more readily available to consumers. Some of this type of information is already in the public domain. I have mentioned the fact-sheet Household Energy Bills Explained, which Ofgem publishes, which includes, among other things, information about costs to consumers of the environmental taxes mentioned in the amendment in an easily understandable form. No doubt there are other examples. We want to build on what exists and ensure that those consumers who want this information can find it easily. That is what we want to achieve. The noble Baroness is right that the Energy Minister promised to take the issue away to see what more could be done, and that is what he is doing as we speak.