Member

The Government insist that they need to do this because they have decided to link the UK carbon tax scheme to that of the European Union. That was their decision—it was a political choice—and that alone has doubled our carbon tax since the start of last year. We are not talking about a slight increase; we are talking about a tax that has more than doubled in less than a year because of choices of the Government. Doubling the carbon tax has increased electricity bills alone by £4 billion. In fact, the carbon tax imposed by the Government now accounts for over £100 per year, or over 12% of the average electricity bill. The increase is costing the wider British economy an extra £5 billion a year, as was pointed out by my noble friend, and this legislation will pile more costs on to consumers.