• Gas prices will be capped at 6.24p per kilowatt hour (kWh), and electricity at 24.5p per kWh – up from 5.48p and 22.36p respectively now. A typical household uses 2,700 kWh of electricity a year, and 11,500 kWh of gas

• Households on prepayment meters will pay slightly less than those on direct debit, with a typical bill of £1,669

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• Those who pay their bills every three months by cash or cheque will pay more, with a typical bill of £1,829

• Standing charges – a fixed daily charge covering the costs of connecting to a supply – will go up to 61p a day for electricity and 32p a day for gas, compared with 60p and 31p respectively now, although they vary by region

The Tories have said the new Labour government should buy in cheap, non-renewable energy – fossil fuels from abroad – to provide a short-term fix for families who may struggle to pay their bills as a result of the change.

But shadow Energy Secretary Clare Coutinho was clearly wrong when she said Labour’s determination to reach a target of “net zero” carbon emissions was “reckless” and gave “no thoughts to the cost”.

UK renewable energy group Octopus Energy refuted this, saying government investment in renewables would “cut bills in every region, saving at least £2bn a year, and giving some parts of the UK the cheapest electricity in Europe”.

Founder Greg Jackson said:

“The way to bring bills down is to build more cheap British wind and solar power, and to mend the market so that costs are set locally – not by global gas prices.”

He’s absolutely right. The UK needs to be energy-independent. That means generating more power – cheaply – here, and passing it on through a state-owned provider.

That is what Energy Secretary Ed Miliband is promising. He said lower energy bills would come with “clean, homegrown power”.

He rightly pointed out that

“The rise in the price cap is a direct result of the failed energy policy we inherited, which has left our country at the mercy of international gas markets controlled by dictators.”

And he correctly identified what needs to be done:

“The only solution to get bills down and greater energy independence is the government’s mission for clean, homegrown power.

“That’s why we have hit the ground running, lifting the onshore wind ban, consenting unprecedented amounts of solar power and setting the largest ever budget for our renewables auction.”

There are problems with renewable energy too; it isn’t entirely clean yet. But it is a much better alternative to fossil fuels, and it will be cheaper in the long run.

UK households just have to get through the current price bottleneck that has been created by short-sighted and greedy Tories who betrayed their duty to get the best deal for the people in order to make fast profits for privatised-energy shareholders.