Energy prices 'have to rise at some point'

• By E4B
• 25 June 2008
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Energy prices in the UK are going to have to rise "at some point", according to the chief executive of British Gas's parent company.

Sam Laidlaw of Centrica has stated that falls in gas production have led to the UK needing to buy "increasingly large volumes" from abroad.

Discussing the issue with a committee of MPs yesterday, he explained that record oil prices and demand from other regions across the globe are also boosting the price of the resource.

He said: "It's clear that at some point these prices will have to rise."

"While other costs remain broadly static or have fallen, the rising commodity costs form an ever greater proportion of customers' bills."

energywatch recently urged the government to take "three steps" to tackle the rising cost of gas and electricity.

It stated that Westminster should lead an initiative to remove the link between the price of gas and barrels of oil, while it also wants the Competition Commission to launch an investigation into the market.

Finally, it claimed that providers should be forced to offer their lowest possible prices to those in fuel poverty.