The latest energy price cap forecast, which predicts a 25% increase in the cap from January, should be a wake-up call for government not to leave our most vulnerable in the cold.

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If current projections prove accurate, the average household energy bill could rise by a staggering £442 a year, taking annual costs to more than £2,100. At a time when millions of families are already struggling with the cost of living, that is not just another headline. This substantial rise will inevitably mean the difference between heating a home properly and rationing warmth. It is the difference between financial stability and falling into debt.

What makes this situation particularly frustrating is that many within the energy efficiency sector warned against the abrupt closure of the ECO4 and Great British Insulation Scheme earlier this year. At the time the heating industry, backed by fuel poverty charities, warned that removing the country's primary fuel poverty programmes without a fully functioning replacement would leave vulnerable households exposed just as energy prices remained volatile. Unfortunately, that warning has proved correct.

Our business supports a number of local authorities, and we see the human consequences of energy policy decisions every day. Behind........

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