Energy Price Cap Removes Risk For One In Four Businesses

One in four business leaders (24%) believe the Government's energy bill relief scheme (EBRS) has removed a serious risk to their business, according to a poll by the Institute of Directors (IoD).

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Of the surveyed 500 or so directors whose energy bills made up more than 5% of their costs, 11% stated they have been able to keep their premises open for longer due to the scheme. A further 35% said that having the energy price cap in place over the winter has made it easier for their business to plan for the future. Meanwhile, 5% said they would have stopped trading altogether if the Government had not stepped in to help businesses with energy bills.

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However, the majority of directors (75%) disagreed with the idea that they would have had to stop trading if it were not for the energy price cap this winter, while 19% neither agreed nor disagreed.

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The EBRS scheme is available to everyone on a non-domestic contract including:

Businesses

Voluntary sector organisations, such as charities

Public sector organisations such as schools, hospitals and care homes.

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For all non-domestic energy users in Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Government supported price has been set at:

Electricity 211 per megawatt hour (MWh)/ 21.1p per kilowatt hour (KWh)

Gas 75 per MWh/ 7.5p per KWh.

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Alex Hall-Chen, senior policy advisor at the IoD, said: Our data shows that the Government's energy bill relief scheme has been a crucial intervention, removing a serious risk to around a quarter of businesses. We therefore urge the government to continue the EBRS for sectors of the economy particularly vulnerable to current fluctuations in international energy markets.

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"To this end, we are concerned that no provision was made for the extension of the scheme beyond March 2023 in the policy costings that accompanied the Autumn Statement."