Hello and welcome to a special episode of Spectator Radio. I'm Kate Andrews, the

Spectator's economics editor and your host for the next half hour as we discuss how to deal

with the rising cost of energy. As the global shortage of gas continues to drive up prices and bills,

a cost of living crisis looms over the

UK. How can we protect those facing fuel poverty when bills are predicted to rise for some by

hundreds of pounds? And as the government heads into COP 26, how do ministers frame the current

crisis within its plans for a green future? To discuss all this

and more, I'm joined by Rebecca Seedler, who is EDF's corporate policy and regulation director,

Alan Brown MP, the SMP Shadow Minister for Energy and Climate Change, and Johnny Marshall,

a senior economist at the Resolution Foundation. This podcast is kindly sponsored by

EDF. Rebecca, let's start with you. The wholesale gas price has risen by 70% since August. Bills for

millions could go up by hundreds of pounds this winter alone. How do we begin to tackle this looming

cost of living crisis? So I think it's incredibly

worrying for all consumers of energy, not just residential, but of course business consumers,

and we've already seen the immediate impacts that that's had on businesses in the media,

and of course, wider supply chain. You know, throughout the winter period,

customers on residential tariffs have a price cap that limits the increases to their bills,

that period. But what we're concerned about going forward, as you mentioned, with the dramatic

prices we're seeing, is what's going to happen

beyond that, and indeed the wider costs that are going to affect all of our consumer goods.

I'm really, really pleased that we're having this discussion on the day where the government

has finally issued the heat and building strategy because, you know, the most

...