The chancellor has urged the public to cut back on their energy use as the crisis over household bills mounts, with analysts predicting they could surge to £10,000 a year and campaigners warning lives will be lost.
Nadhim Zahawi said he was working “flat out” to ensure the next prime minister would be able to offer help to those who need it most as soon as possible.
But with more than a week still to go before the new PM is announced, he added that the public should “look at” their own energy consumption.
The move marks a U-turn in government policy on the issue. Earlier this week No 10 said people should carry on using as much gas and electricty as they want because there was no risk of winter blackouts.
“It is a difficult time,” Mr Zahawi said. “There is war on our continent. Very few people anticipated war.” He added: “The reality is that we should all look at our energy consumption.”
The Liberal Democrats called on him to apologise for his remarks.
Christine Jardine, Lib Dem Cabinet Office spokesperson, said: “Families and pensioners are facing a devastating winter after today’s Ofgem announcement but still ministers keep putting the burden on the British public. This is yet another kick in the teeth from this Conservative government and Nadhim Zahawi should apologise for his comments now.”
A Treasury source hit back, saying: “Just because the Lib Dems are experts in expelling hot air, doesn’t mean the rest of us should be. It’s sad to see them playing into [Vladimir] Putin’s hands by trying to point score whilst the government is engaged in actually helping people both at home and in Ukraine.”
The row erupted after Ofgem announced the price cap for a typical household is set to rise to £3,549 in October.
In a separate move, Boris Johnson said his successor would “plainly” have to provide further direct support to consumers to help with soaring energy bills.
Liz Truss, the favourite to replace Mr Johnson, has yet to commit to any extra financial payments.
The foreign secretary has pledged “immediate support” if she becomes prime minister, without setting out exactly what that would involve.
She said she was looking at assistance “across the board”, after announcing tax cuts and saying she did not favour what she described as “handouts”.
Mr Johnson said the existing “pipeline” of government support, announced in May, “is clearly now going to be augmented, increased, by extra cash that the government is plainly going to be announcing in September”.
He also indicated he favoured targeted support, rather than subsiding all households, adding: “What I don’t think we should be doing is trying to cap the whole thing for absolutely everybody, the richest households in the country.”
Mr Zahawi said he could not commit to any further help on energy bills – saying he could only “develop options” for either Ms Truss or her rival Rishi Sunak, depending on who becomes PM early next month.
Consumer champion Martin Lewis has warned the cost of living crisis is a “genuine social and financial catastrophe that is putting lives at risk”.
A Labour spokesperson accused the government of having “no answers and no plan”.
Labour has called on ministers to freeze the energy price cap as it is – a policy government ministers say would be poorly targeted and cost billions.
Meanwhile, Ms Truss’s plans to bypass an independent watchdog when she unveils an emergency budget next month have come under pressure after the Office for Budget Responsibility confirmed it could provide an economic forecast in time.
