THE BIGGEST jump in energy prices in living memory will “rub salt in the wounds” of Bradford families already reeling from the cost-of-living crisis, it is feared.

In one inner-city Bradford constituency, a staggering 44.6 per cent of households were already living in fuel poverty even before yesterday’s record increase to the energy price cap.

The “potentially ruinous” rise to household bills is expected to leave thousands more families across the district struggling to make payments.

Statistics released by the End Fuel Poverty Coalition show that the number of households plunging into fuel poverty this year has nearly doubled in four years.

The statistics show that over 50,000 households in Bradford will be impacted by fuel poverty in 2022, in comparison to 27,000 in 2019.

Low-income households will be hit the hardest by the price rise, combined with the worst cost of living crisis in decades.

From yesterday, energy markets regulator Ofgem increased its price cap by a record-breaking 54 per cent.

Naz Shah, MP for Bradford West, said: “Figures released today show 44.6 per cent of households in Bradford West are living in fuel poverty. That is a stark increase of 22.2 per cent in the number of households from 2019.

“Families in Bradford are struggling to put food on the table, pay their energy bills and the government has offered nothing but a £200 loan for them to pay off later.

“Yet, Shell and BP have announced more than £20,000,000,000 in profits since last year, but the government refuses to place a one-off windfall tax on oil companies to lessen the burden on working families.

“Their refusal to help working families is reckless.”

Imran Hussain, MP for Bradford East, tweeted: “From today energy bills will shoot up by 54 per cent -rubbing salt in the wounds of families at the sharp end of the cost-of-living crisis.

“Tories will claim this was inevitable, but the French Government has capped electricity price rises at 4 per cent.

“This was a political choice.”

Before the price surge, the average household bill was £1,277, but now the average household bill will be £700 more.

The Resolution Foundation think tank said the number of English households in fuel stress – those spending at least 10 per cent of their total budgets on energy bills – was set to double overnight from 2.5 to five million.

Resolution Foundation senior economist Jonathan Marshall said: “Today’s energy price cap rise will see the number of households experiencing fuel stress double to five million.

“Another increase in energy bills this autumn hastens the need for more immediate support, as well as a clear, long-term strategy for improving home insulation, ramping up renewable and nuclear electricity generation, and reforming energy markets so that families’ energy bills are less dependent on global gas prices.”

Citizens Advice chief executive Dame Clare Moriarty said the rise will be “potentially ruinous for millions of people across the country”.

The charity said around five million people would be unable to pay their energy bills from April, even accounting for the support the Government has already announced.

It warned this number would almost triple to one in four people in the UK – more than 14 million – if the price cap rises again in October based on current predictions.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has previously pledged to “take the sting out” of the price rises, promising all 28 million households in Britain would get a £200 upfront rebate on their energy bills from October.

The Government will provide the cash for this, but it wants the money back so will hike bills by £40 per year over the next five years from 2023 to recoup it.

Fuel prices have also reached record highs in recent weeks amid a rise in oil prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Mr Sunak cut fuel duty by 5p in his spring statement last week, but retailers have been accused of failing to fully pass on the saving.

On Thursday, there were reports of energy companies’ websites crashing as people rushed to submit meter readings.

Customers reported issues logging in to supplier websites including British Gas, EDF, E.On, SSE, So Energy and Octopus Energy from early on Thursday.

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