THE DISPATCH
HOUSEHOLD BILLS
What other countries are doing to ease the cost of living crisis
Rishi Sunak has been criticised for failing to support the UK’s poorest as inflation rises. Are other governments across the world faring better?
FRANCE
From this month, households in the UK will see their energy bills rise by as much as 54 per cent as the price cap limiting what suppliers can charge is lifted. In essence, this is because energy companies are passing along the high cost of wholesale gas onto ordinary consumers.
Not all countries have passed along these costs to consumers, however. In France, state-owned energy company EDF has been forced to take an €8.4 billion (£7bn) financial hit to cap household bill rises to just four per cent.
In December, low-income French households also received a one-off payment of €100 to help with rising energy costs.
In the UK, households will receive a £200 loan as energy prices are set to rise again in October. This loan will be paid back in instalments on future energy bills.
From April, France will also be introducing an 18-cent-per-litre reduction on fuel at petrol stations.
GERMANY
Germany recently passed a raft of measures to help households cope with the cost of living crisis, including a cut to tax on fuel for three months by 30 cents for petrol and 14 cents for diesel.
Alongside this, the government is launching a large-scale programme to replace oil and
