Labour has accused the Conservatives of leaving the UK the most exposed major economy to rising energy prices.
The party said that data compiled by the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero shows why the UK has been hit hardest by soaring energy prices following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) data shows that in 2021 the UK had the highest average domestic electricity price of the countries assessed by the global body.
Labour said that it showed how vulnerable the UK was to energy shocks, even before Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine.
Shadow climate change and net zero minister Alan Whitehead said: “Every family in the country is paying the price in higher energy bills because 13 years of failed Conservative energy policy have left us vulnerable.
“They failed to prepare and to protect Britain – and it is families and businesses that have paid the price.
“Even before Putin’s invasion, over a decade of Tory decisions – from banning onshore wind, to cutting insulation and solar, and stalling nuclear – meant UK households were facing the highest bills of any major economy.
He said that the country “cannot afford another Tory government”.
Labour also pointed to Government failures on insulation and energy efficiency, as well as on solar and nuclear power.
Mr Whitehead said: “Only Labour has a plan to cut energy bills once and for all, with our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030, and our Warm Homes plan, which taken together will cut energy bills permanently by up to £1,400 for every family – creating jobs, strengthening our energy security, and tackling the climate crisis along the way.”
Energy Security Secretary Grant Shapps hit back at Labour.
“Labour’s Energy Surrender Plan, written by Just Stop Oil, will sacrifice 213,000 British jobs, cost £87 billion, and increase our dependency on dictators like Putin,” he said.
“Instead of cosying up to foreign energy dictators like Labour did when they were last in office, we’re powering more of Britain from Britain.
“The amount of electricity from renewables is up from less than 7% in 2010 to over 41% now and we’re delivering four new state-of-the-art nuclear reactors.”
Greenpeace warned that energy security will come only from a switch to renewables.
The group’s head of politics, Rebecca Newsom, said: “Contrary to the guff that the Conservative government continually spouts about ‘needing more oil and gas for energy security’ and to ‘reduce our dependency on dictators’, drilling for more fossil fuels will do anything but this.
“Since fossil fuels aren’t nationalised in this country, any oil and gas extracted from the North Sea belongs to the company that extracted it, not the UK. They can then sell that oil and gas on the international market at international rates.
“This will not increase energy security nor will it mean we import less.”
She said a switch away from “climate-wrecking fossil fuel” will “give the UK the energy security it so desperately needs” while also helping to tackle the climate crisis and lowering bills.
