After spending the summer telling voters that they’re worse off under the Tories, Ed Miliband knew that he needed an emblematic policy that would show them how they’d be better off under Labour. The result, unveiled in his speech, was a pledge to freeze energy prices until 2017. Miliband said: “The next Labour government will freeze gas and electricity prices until the start of 2017. Your bills will be frozen, benefitting millions of families and millions of businesses. That is what I mean by a government that fights for you. That’s what I mean when I say: Britain can do better than this.”
One senior Labour strategist told me after the speech that the party had focused-grouped the policy and that voter approval was “off the scale”. Polling has consistently shown that of every ‘cost-of-living’ issue, it is energy prices that are the public’s greatest concern. With this intervention, Miliband has framed himself as a strong leader prepared to stand up to predatory firms on behalf of the little guy. He noted that “the companies won’t like it because it will cost them money” but added: “they have been overcharging people for so long because the market does not work. And we need to press the reset button.” The party calculates that the move, which will be backed by legislation in the first month of a Labour government, will save consumers £120 and businesses £1,800.
While the Tories have capped benefits and immigration, Miliband has smartly borrowed this device to show how Labour would tackle the ‘cost of living crisis” it has so often bemoaned. The question now is how the Conservaties will respond: will they steal it or kill it? David Cameron has promised action to force firms “to give the lowest tariff to their customers” but this falls well short of Miliband’s pledge, and charities and consumer groups warn that it will have little meaningful effect on prices.
So far, the Tory attack machine has responded by claiming that Miliband’s commitment to a 2030 decarbonisation target would add £125 to households’ energy bills but soon Cameron will be forced to answer the question that Labour will inevitably pose: are you for a cap or against one?
The Tories’ natural free-market aversion to price controls means it will be hard for Cameron to support any form of cap, but he will be reluctant to allow Labour to claim that he has taken the side of companies over consumers and again stood up for the “wrong people”. At the moment, the Tories’ response to Miliband’s cap seems to be to change the subject. But as Labour found in the case of welfare and immigration, that is a politically fraught course. With his announcement today, Miliband has set a brilliant trap for Cameron that the Conservatives will struggle to avoid walking into.
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