www.iva.co.uk

Households already under pressure from soaring energy tariffs will see gas and electricity bills rise by an extra 20% for the UK to fund ambitious emission targets, a report has said.

Consumers will have to fork out an extra £5.3 billion by 2020 to meet the European Union's emission and renewable energy goals - price rises which come on top of sky-high bill hikes, according to Ernst & Young.

There are already fears that energy costs could rise by up to 40% this year alone as oil prices continue to keep rising.

But the report, called Costing the Earth, claimed that the EU 2020 targets for emission and renewal energy will further compound the energy cost pressures.

demand for products is getting to high also i think it only a matter of time before a cap is put on how many children you can have[:0]people are living a lot longer nowadays i am pleased i will be debt free who knows what the future holds[xx(]

I think I will have to get me one of those body blanket type things you see in the sunday supplements! That and a hot water bottle will keep me warm when I can't afford the gas!

I've alrady told oh that we will have to invest in throws for the sofa - fo when it's cold (but not freezing) so we can just pull it over us to keep warm - strange thing was he thought I was joking!

[:I]

For those of you old enough to remember, you could always take Billy Connolly's advice and invest in a "Big Slipper" and an "Energy Suit"!!

Seriously though, things are getting silly in this sector. Imagine selling gas abroad when it it is cheap and buying it back when it is expensive. I know there is a problem with capacity, but surely there must be another way? What is the EU doing about it?

I don't want to get into the green argument, but we coal reserves conseratively estimated at another 300 to 400 years, and much greener ways of burning it now as well. Doesn't make sense to me to bankrupt the country by buying in expensive energy when we have our own sources here, not to mention the job creation and job security it would provide for 10's of 1000's of people. That's only a personal view, of course, but I would be interested to hear what others think.

Regards.

Wind turbines are ugly and the wind is unpredictable. We are an island so why on earth don't we harness wave power?

It amazes me how the increase in energy costs has put so many people into fuel poverty, yet the government are not doing anything about it.

I would encourage everyone to check they have adequate loft and cavity insulation as it really does make a difference if the property can have it. Its can also be installed free for many people!

My house is less than 15yrs old and I thought I would have had the walls insulated when it was built but had it checked out last year and there was no insulation. Had it done and it really does make a difference.

We have got solid walls which means that we can't do much in the way of insulating! We're in a downstairs maisonette, so our insulation is the girl upstairs! We are thinking of getting a new front door as ours doesn't fit properly so we must lose a lot of heat through that.

Skippy ask the girl upstairs to turn the heating up lol.

Changing your front door will make a difference.

On my soapbox now lol

The problem is a new front door is so expensive - to get one fitted is between £700-£1000 on the website I looked on and we haven't got the money. It looks like it might be one from B & Q with Dave fitting it!

Swans girl, our house was the same - built 20 years ago and we thought we had cavity wall. We didn't and had ours done and the loft insulation topping up. It has made a big difference.

Because hubbie is on benefits, we got it done free. I wonder if people on here are aware that this option is open to them?

We live on a housing assocoation in a 70 year old house. They have put the cavity wall insulation in and the loft is recently redone as ell, but they still insiston wooden windows, and paint every five years. a lot have questioned why they wont double glaze and it is because of the green issue, but the amount of heat and energy that leaks out through these old ill fitting windows and doors is just as bad. Our bills are shooting up at the moment, something needs to be done or we will all freeze to death.

ang

Jan - good point, I bet loads of people miss out 'cos free insulation isn't advertised enough.

Depending on the are you live, most energy companies will be running some scheme - but every council has an energy officer who could point people in the right direction.

In some parts of Wales and England there are projects running that offer this service on behalf of councils - free to a high proportion of people.If anyone needs more info let me know.