Daily Express, on Climate, 28 October 2026

3.0out of 10Minor

UK households face £465 energy bills increase in January

Tap a highlight to see why it matters.1 finding

UK households face £465 energy bills increase in January but Budget set to help Help on rising energy bills is expected to be announced today. Share Article Share Article Facebook X LinkedIn Reddit Bluesky Email Copy Link Link copied Add us as preferred source Comments By Alex Evans , Deputy Audience Editor 09:38, Wed, Oct 28, 2026 Updated: 09:38, Wed, Oct 28, 2026 Energy bills are set to rocket £465 but help is coming (Image: Getty) Households are facing a 'nightmare' 27% rise in energy bills in January which will add £465 onto the average, typical use households' dual fuel energy bills - but help is set to be announced in the Budget today.

Money expert Martin Lewis met Chancellor John Healey this morning ahead of the Budget speech to Parliament, where the government already confirmed plans to axe the hated standing charges from gas bills which will save anyone with a gas supply a total of £108 a year. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT But Martin warned ITV's GMB viewers this morning that the real 'nightmare' is that Ofgem is set to hike average energy bills by another 27% in January following rises in the cost of wholesale gas, meaning the current £1,723 illustrative figure would rise by another £465.

However, Martin said that 'reading between the lines', the Chancellor hinted that further support for energy bills will be announced this afternoon. Get personal finance news, money saving tips and advice plus selcted offers and competitions I would like to receive emails from the Daily Express featuring our latest products, services, offers, and promotions from across the Reach Plc family . Subscribe Invalid email You agree you are 18 or over.

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. You can unsubscribe at any time. More Info . The MoneySavingExpert founder, who had been in No 11 on the morning of the fiscal statement, said on X: “I’ve just come out of a meeting with the Chancellor. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT “The gas standing charge will be scrapped in 2027 (my guess, either for 1 Oct price cap or the 1 Jan 28 price cap).

Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT “Having campaigned against the moral hazard of standing charges for years, I’m pleased. “It’s currently £108 a year. That cost will be shifted onto unit rates. We don’t know how much yet, but I suspect just under 1p per kwH. “The Chancellor also said he will be talking to Ofgem about how they get rid of the charge on electricity as well, but that is ‘trickier’ apparently and will take longer.” Mr Lewis said “about 60% of people will pay less due to this, 40% more”, with the dividing line “somewhere around 12,500 kilowatt hours of gas,” as he called for support for vulnerable higher users who will have to pay more.

He continued: “That’s all long-term. The biggest issue in energy right now is that we’re expecting a 27% rise in the price cap in January. “I asked the Chancellor whether he will be intervening on that. He told me I’d have to wait for the Budget, but reading between the lines, yes, there will be an announcement today. “Whether it’s an increase in the warm home discount, or whether it’s council tax (band-related), or whether it’s done via a payout for people in say council tax bands A-D as a proxy for household income as Rishi Sunak did who knows.”

Martin Lewis confirms £108 gas bills cut after standing charge change Labour's Cash ISA u-turn blasted as 'deeply misguided' as Reeves plan faces axe The Greens said Chancellor John Healey’s move to scrap standing charges on gas bills amounted to “tinkering”. A party spokesperson said: “Abolishing standing charges is more tinkering from a Government that is failing to take the bold action needed to end the cost-of-living crisis. “Energy bills have skyrocketed in recent years and are set to rise by hundreds of pounds again this winter.

“‘Hope’ is an easy thing to promise but will not be delivered by a business-as-usual Budget.” Martin Lewis Energy bills Ofgem John Healey Share Article Share Article Facebook X LinkedIn Reddit Bluesky Email Copy Link Link copied Add us as preferred source Comments

Read the original article on express.co.uk (opens in a new tab)
What we found (1)

The Daily Express reports Martin Lewis's warning of a 27% January price cap rise and the scrapping of the gas standing charge. It correctly puts the rise down to wholesale gas costs and says who will pay more under the standing charge change. Its headline turns Lewis's guess that the Budget will bring help into a firmer promise than the body supports.

  1. Headline goes beyond the article

    Minor

    “but Budget set to help”

    Why this matters
    The headline says the Budget is "set to help" with the January rise, with no attribution or hedge.
    The impression it gives
    A reader takes it as confirmed that the Budget will include support against the £465 increase.
    The context
    The body rests this only on Martin Lewis 'reading between the lines' after the Chancellor told him to wait for the Budget. The only confirmed measure is the gas standing charge change, which Lewis calls 'long-term' and which shifts the cost onto unit rates rather than offsetting the January rise.

    How we know

    • Elsewhere in the article“He told me I’d have to wait for the Budget, but reading between the lines”
    • Elsewhere in the article“the Chancellor hinted that further support for energy bills will be announced”

    Show it in the article

What it gets right

  • “following rises in the cost of wholesale gas”

    The article names wholesale gas prices as the driver of the January rise. It does not blame the increase on climate policy.

  • “about 60% of people will pay less due to this, 40% more”

    It tells readers the standing charge change is not a saving for everyone and says who loses out.

Spot something we missed? Report this article

More from Daily Express

  1. 28 OctMan, 20, killed in fatal crash as Storm Boelo battered Britain pictured for first time0.0
  2. 28 OctA new £47bn power station will make energy bills more expensive - 'terrible deal!'6.0
  3. 28 OctUK drivers warned of 'dangerous' conditions on Thursday - 'avoid travel if possible'3.0
  4. 27 OctUK households handed £850 boost with new Warm Homes scheme under Andy Burnham6.0
  5. 27 OctMet Office issues weather warning update as Brits in 7 UK areas face 'danger to life' risk0.0

Everything we scored from Daily Express