Prime Minister Liz Truss
(Picture: PA Wire)The Government will launch a campaign to urge households to reduce their energy consumption, the Prime Minister has said, despite previously claiming that Britons would not be told to cut their electricity use.
Liz Truss told MPs that Energy Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg is "working on a plan to help companies and individuals use energy more efficiently".
It follows reports that Ms Truss was “ideologically opposed” to telling households about methods to save energy and had blocked plans for a winter campaign.
Earlier this week cabinet minister Nadhim Zahawi said the public information campaign was pulled by Number10 because it would have cost up to £15m.
In the Commons on Wednesday, Conservative MP for Hexham Guy Opperman urged the Prime Minister to "have a nationwide mailout" on energy reduction.
He said: "Too few businesses and households know about it, even if the Labour Party don't support it.
"Can I urge you to have a nationwide mailout campaign to communicate what the Government is doing to assist people on reduction of energy, and more particularly have a reduction of energy campaign by the public service, so that we don't go down the route of spending too much on consumption and we reduce supply?"
Ms Truss replied: "Well he is absolutely right and I know the energy secretary is working on a plan to help companies and individuals use energy more efficiently.
"We're also working on this across Government, I was delighted to speak to my friend yesterday and I hope we'll be able to start this going in Number 10 straight away."
Number 10 denied the move was a U-turn.
The Prime Minister's spokesman said the Government does not intend to run a “new bespoke campaign” on helping people to cut energy bills, but “there is a great deal of information already available” on reducing household electricity use.
