A new report from the think tank Onward, commissioned by the Conservatives, argues that stepping back from the current net zero approach and building more gas and nuclear power stations could save households money.
However, the figures reported in media headlines inflate the reality in the report.
The £540 headline saving quoted is an economy-wide figure expressed per household. The report’s own estimate of the actual electricity cost saving for an average home is around £200 between 2027 and 2035.
The small print of the report is reveals that the suggested approach would be more exposed to a future gas price shock and that electrification of homes and transport would be slowed down significantly.
Further questions have been raised about the cost of maintaining the gas grid for longer and for the burden this could put on households left using gas in their homes. The plan also relies on tripling nuclear capacity through the Regulated Asset Base model, which is already adding to bills to fund Sizewell C construction.
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition put detailed questions [pdf] about an earlier version of the Conservative Shadow Energy Secretary’s plans in October 2025 and received no reply.
A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition said:
“A number on a social media post is not a cut on anyone’s bill and the saving that reaches a household is a fraction of the headline being claimed.
“What is striking is what the plan admits. It would leave households more exposed to the next gas price shock, not less, and it slows the very switch away from gas that would protect them. The people who will suffer the most are those left behind, paying to maintain an ageing gas grid.
“The costs associated with more nuclear expansion recommended by the report would add to bills well before any power is generated and the costs of new gas-fired plants are also unclear.
“The way to bring bills down for good is to break the link between electricity prices and volatile gas markets, insulate the coldest and dampest homes and build a homegrown, renewables-led system that gives the country control over prices.”
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