No 10: the government has not asked for a price freeze

If today’s energy bills confusion is an example of how the government plants stories, it really is a poor gardener of news. Number 10 this morning denied that ministers had asked the energy companies for a price freeze, with the Prime Minister’s spokesman saying: ‘The government has not asked for a price freeze’ and added that ‘people should wait for the Autumn Statement when we will spell out our plans to roll back the impact of levies on people’s energy bills’.

The spokesman explained that the government will be focusing on the need for more competition through the annual competition review and rolling back the levies and charges on energy bills.

But it is deeply unfortunate that on a story that is so sensitive to the Tories as they’ve already been wallowing around trying to work out a response to Labour’s cost of living drive. This story has emerged from talks behind the scenes between ministers and energy companies, but a smooth announcement would be the least they could have hoped for.