Boris Johnson has said that he will not "rule out" cutting VAT on energy bills to help ease the financial burden imposed by the cost-of-living crisis.
However, he was non-committal when asked if he would slash fuel duty further, following the cut of 5p per litre to help cash-strapped motorists in March.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Saturday (June 25), the Prime Minister said the Government is doing “a huge amount” to support people “with the fiscal firepower we have”.
Asked why he had not yet cut VAT on energy bills, he said: “I don’t rule out that we will do it.”
He said the Government had “already cut fuel duty by record amounts”, but he acknowledged this would be “swallowed up” and added: “There may be more that we have to do.”
Pressed on whether the tax will be slashed further he said: “We want to make sure that those cuts are properly passed on to the consumer.”
He said: “I’m very happy to have an argument about tax and I’m saying some of the things that we’re already doing.
“But when it comes to energy, and the cost of people’s energy bills, tax is not enough. You’ve got to look at the way the whole thing works.
“And at the moment one of the problems is that people are being charged for their electricity prices on the basis of the top marginal gas price, and that is frankly ludicrous.
“We need to get rid of that system.
“We need to reform our energy markets, as they have done in other European countries.
“So that is one of the ways by reforming the market, by changing the way things work, that you can get prices down, you can bear down on costs for people.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here