The Chancellor is expected to cancel a planned £500 hike in average energy bills which was due to come into force next month. Treasury officials are looking at plans to guarantee that households continue to pay 34p per unit of electricity and 10.3p per unit of gas that they use.
For the average household that means bills will stay at around £2,500, instead of going up to £3,000 as was previously announced. The Press Association said the news was first reported by the Times and the BBC on Friday.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has come under increasing pressure in recent weeks to cancel the rise, which was set to come into force from April 1. As wholesale energy prices have dropped, it has become increasingly affordable for the Government to continue protecting customers with the same deal they are on now.
