Inside Politics: Sunak urged to act as energy bills soar

Energy regulator to lift price cap, increasing household bills by hundreds of pounds, writes Matt Mathers

The Treasury must do more to crack down on fraud, MPs have said (Stefan Rousseau / PA) (PA Wire)

Boris Johnson’s government yesterday set out a grand strategy to ‘level up’ the country as the prime minister asked voters to give him until 2030 to see the plan through. But back in the reality of here and now, millions of households are about to be hit with a staggering rise in their energy bills – and ministers have so far done nothing to help with rising costs. Rishi Sunak is under increasing pressure to act and reports this morning say he is set to announce some relief in the form of council tax rebates. Elsewhere, the DUP has threatened to suspend Irish Sea border checks and London and Moscow have been trading barbs on the Ukraine crisis.

Inside the bubble

Commons proceedings get underway with transport questions at 9.30am. Next up are any urgent questions followed by the increasingly must-watch business statement by Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Commons leader. Main business will be back bench debates on the government’s education catch-up and the code of conduct for MPs.