Energy hikes, tax bills and a surge in pub revenues thanks to Euro 2016

A levy could be added to bills to ensure that consumers do not lose out if their energy supplier goes bust under proposals put forward by Ofgem.

With more than 40 firms now offering gas and electricity deals, the energy watchdog has warned of the danger of one becoming insolvent. At present anyone who is in credit with their energy supplier could lose out. The watchdog wants the cost of a safety net to be paid for by customers, which would have ‘a small impact on bills’. Ofgem’s senior partner for consumers and competition, Rachel Fletcher, said: ‘We are proposing a safety net to protect customers’ credit balances in the unlikely event of a supplier failure.’ Taxing times

Employees are paying an average £1.25 an hour in direct and indirect tax with the daily contribution to the Government amounting to more than £30, new analysis from MetLife shows. But only 69p an hour of the average worker’s tax bill is due to direct deductions from earnings including income tax and National Insurance with the rest mounting up from  charges including VAT on spending, council tax and duty on a range of daily essentials.

Indirect taxes cost the average person nearly £5,000 a year – or 56p an hour – while income tax and National Insurance cost around £6,000.