The signatories span energy suppliers and generators, heavy industry, retail and hospitality, consumer groups, environmental campaigners, housing charities and heat pump manufacturers.

They include Energy UK, the CBI, Which?, Age UK, the British Retail Consortium, UKHospitality, the Food & Drink Federation, techUK, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, WWF-UK, Octopus Energy, EDF, Orsted, E.ON, British Gas and dozens of manufacturing, heat pump and renewables firms.

The letter, written ahead of the Autumn Budget, has argued that Britain has “some of the highest energy costs of any developed nation”, with bills 70% higher than in 2021 and electricity prices standing 45% above the G7 median, which has had “profound consequences on the cost of living and economic growth”.

“Realising the UK’s economic potential requires a material change in how we approach energy costs,” it stated.

It praised the Government’s “sustained focus on expanding homegrown clean power generation”, which has “already delivered clear benefits during the current crisis”. However, it said “the same focus must now be given to the next phase of delivery, driving electrification of energy demand”, which must be done through cheaper bills.

The letter continued: “Cheaper electricity would have an outsized economic impact because it acts as a clear incentive to adopt low-carbon technologies and invest in UK businesses. This creates a virtuous cycle, enabling the fixed costs of the electricity system to be spread over more demand, further lowering electricity costs for all customers.”

A call for action

The signatories welcomed the Government’s recent decision to temporarily remove VAT from domestic electricity bills, and credited the Autumn Budget 2025 for making a “welcome start” by shifting some levies from household bills to the Exchequer, but said that move “did not go far enough”.

The coalition wants the Government to move the remaining levies used to fund energy and decarbonisation policy off both household and business electricity bills entirely, arguing the UK is unusual internationally in funding these policies this way.

The letter set out four main arguments for the change:

Reducing energy bills: business electricity prices could fall by up to 20%, and the total average household energy bill reduction achieved by the Government could reach as much as £250 a year
Tackling fuel poverty: a typical electrically heated household, twice as likely as others to be in fuel poverty, could save up to £420 a year, since low-income households currently spend three times the income share on levies that wealthier households do
Boosting the economy: with over 40% of companies reportedly cutting investment because of high energy costs, the group says cutting electricity prices to the G7 median could add £250 billion in economic output over the next decade
Bringing down inflation: the letter cites the Autumn Budget 2025 energy package as expected to reduce CPI inflation by 0.25 percentage points in 2026/27

The letter has landed ahead of the Autumn Budget, due on 28 October, which will be the first delivered by Chancellor Healey and Prime Minister Andy Burnham since they took office earlier this year.

Rob Hakimian for Utility Week

This article originally appeared on edie’s sister title Utility Week

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