Speaking yesterday in Parliament, the Chancellor has backed Bradford East MP, Imran Hussain’s call for a Windfall Tax to be imposed on the bumper profits made by oil and gas giants throughout the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Following soaring energy bills for households across Bradford that alongside spiralling fuel costs and mounting food costs are creating a rising cost of living crisis,  Imran has repeatedly written to the Chancellor and spoken in Parliament to urge the Government to implement a Windfall Tax on the immense profits made by oil and gas energy companies, with the money raised from this tax used to help fund cuts to families’ energy bills and take some pressure off struggling household finances.

However, despite the Government dismissing the calls from Imran and the Labour Party for a Windfall Tax, and even recently ordering their MPs to vote against Labour’s plan to include it in the Queen’s Speech in May, the Chancellor has today announced a mammoth U-Turn that now sees the Government back the idea of a Windfall Tax, with a 25% levy applied to energy profits.

In addition to reversing their opposition to a Windfall Tax on oil and gas giants, the Chancellor also announced that the Government will be scrapping the previously announced mandatory energy loan which households would have had to repay, and will instead be transforming the loan into a grant instead, which Imran called for back in March 2022.

However, despite backtracking to now announce a Windfall Tax and energy bill grant, the Government have still refused to raise welfare and pensions in line with inflation, or restore the £20 Universal Credit uplift that helped keep thousands of families in Bradford and across the country out of poverty during the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Speaking on the announcement that the Government will be implementing a Windfall Tax on oil and gas giants, Imran said:

“Whilst today’s announcement is a step forward after months of stubborn resistance from Ministers, the Government’s desperate U-turn on my calls and the calls of the Labour Party for a Windfall Tax and to reform their absurd mandatory energy bill loan is long overdue, and for many families in Bradford who fell into fuel poverty and debt as Ministers delayed and bickered amongst themselves, this news is far too late.

“Instead of acting immediately, the Chancellor and Prime Minister have spent months arguing against a Windfall Tax, and rather than supporting struggling families who have had to choose between heating or eating whilst worrying about how they will keep a roof over their head as the cost of living soars, members of the Government went on TV to defend oil and gas giants, even as they made bumper profits.

“Sadly, the Chancellor has also refused to commit to further measures which are desperately needed to help families tackle soaring energy bills, spiralling fuel costs and mounting food costs, with no announcement on raising pensions and welfare payments in line with inflation, and no commitment on reintroducing the £20 universal credit uplift that would keep so many people out of poverty. In this context, the Government’s actions are just not enough.