Brits who 'really need help' with their bills could get support soon

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said she has ‘found the money’ to help out Brits during the energy crisis (Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) People who have been left worrying about their energy bills rising after the Iran war could get government support from next week. Rachel Reeves said she is set to announce support a package of support ‘to those who really need it’ next week. It’s thought to be aimed at people who rely on heating oil, which is not covered by the energy price cap. Gas and electricity bills are covered by regulator Ofgem’s price cap which is fixed until June, but if the conflict continues and Iran maintains its stranglehold on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, then, households could face dramatic hikes at that point. But about 1.5 million households relying on heating oil already face soaring costs, with the price per litre doubling since the start of the crisis. In an interview with The Times, Reeves said: ‘I have found the money and we’ve worked through with MPs and others a response for people who are not protected by the energy price cap. ‘We’re giving greater support to those who really need it.’ There is more time to draw up a plan for gas and electricity bills, because of the price cap. Analysts at Cornwall Insight have forecast that household energy bills could rise by 10% from July following sharp increases in wholesale gas prices. Gas and electricity bills are covered by regulator Ofgem’s price cap which is fixed until June. But this doesn’t work (Picture: Getty Images) This would mean Ofgem’s price cap for July to September surges to £1,801 a year for a typical dual fuel household – an increase of £160 or 10% on April’s cap. ‘We’ve got some time, and we are working through in the Iran response board (a group of Treasury ministers and officials) different approaches that we could take, including looking at more targeted options,” the Chancellor told The Times. ‘We are working through different scenarios at the moment and I don’t want to suggest that we’re going to do something that we know we’re not able to deliver. ‘I am concerned given how high our debt is, the debt that we inherited, and so I want to look at what the different options available would be.’ She played down the prospect of a blanket energy bailout for households, as happened in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at the cost of about £35 billion over a six-month period. “It is important even when there is an economic shock — or perhaps particularly when there’s an economic shock — that you continue to be disciplined about your use of public money,” she said. The Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for oil and gas tankers, usually sees 138 ships a day pass through but that has declined to about five due to the threat of attack. The threat to global supplies has led to volatility in oil and gas prices, feeding through to the higher fuel bills and the risk of increased household energy costs. {"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Government 'will not tolerate' fuel price gouging during Iran crisis","duration":"T1M23S","thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2026\/03\/12\/19\/107089357-0-image-a-3_1773343448148.jpg","uploadDate":"2026-03-12T19:20:22+0000","description":"Energy Secretary Ed Miliband spoke to Metro about what the Government is doing to help people as fuel prices spike in response to the US\/Israeli war in Iran.","contentUrl":"https:\/\/videos.metro.co.uk\/video\/met\/2026\/03\/12\/146310806332160879\/480x270_MP4_146310806332160879.mp4","height":270,"width":480} To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Up Next Previous Page Next Page window.addEventListener('metroVideo:relatedVideosCarouselLoaded', function(data) { if (typeof(data.detail) === 'undefined' || typeof(data.detail.carousel) === 'undefined' || typeof(data.detail.carousel.el_) === 'undefined') { return; } var player = data.detail.carousel.el_; var container = player.closest('.metro-video-player'); var placeholder = container.querySelector('.metro-video-player__up-next-placeholder'); if (placeholder) { container.removeChild(placeholder); container.classList.add('metro-video-player--related-videos-loaded'); } }); A Government spokesman said: ‘We know that people are concerned about the potential impact of global conflicts on the cost of living. ‘While it is too soon to know the full impact of this crisis, as the Chancellor said, she will take the necessary decisions to help families with the cost of living and protect the public finances. ‘We have extended the 5p fuel duty cut, expanded the Warm Homes Discount to take £150 a year off of energy bills for six million households and the energy price cap will protect households for the next three months as bills will fall by £117’. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch called for the Chancellor to scrap September’s ‘stupid’ planned increase in fuel duty, which she said was ‘the last thing we need’, and demanded the UK should ‘start drilling’ in the North Sea. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. For more stories like this, check our news page.