Labour are celebrating hiking taxes on hardworking British families to cover for their own failures, it has been claimed. The blistering criticism comes after the energy secretary Ed Miliband crowed that energy prices had been reduced by £117 despite opponents suggesting they have actually gone UP by £73 under Labour.

Claire Coutinho, the Conservative shadow energy secretary described it as “breathtaking” that Mr Miliband was “celebrating the fact that he’s raised taxes on hardworking families to cover the cost of his own failures”. She added that “energy bills are up by £73 under Labour” and that “At the same time he is pushing forward with the utter madness of shutting down the North Sea – losing thousands of jobs, harming our economy, and making us more dependent on foreign energy.”

Ms Coutinho claimed that Labour would be locking in higher energy prices for decades to come. Analysis seen by the Express reveals that the price cap is in fact some £73 higher than at the 2024 general election – in July last year it was £1,568, and from April it will stand at £1,641. Conservatives claim that a hike in taxation is being used to fund a renewable energy program, and that the government has simply put extra costs into taxes to fund cuts to bills.

Sir Keir Starmer said that the reduction in the price cap was made possible “because of the actions this Government took at the last budget”. Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, delivered a tax hiking budget last year which saw her breaking manifesto commitments and sending taxes rocketing. The Labour minister said that it “means lower energy bills for millions across the country” but stressed there was “more to do”

Speaking this morning on a series of television interviews, Mr Miliband suggested that using north sea oil and gas would not reduce the cost of domestic energy bills. Andy Mayer, Energy Analyst at the IEA responding, said: “The North Sea basin is too small for changes in supply to materially impact global oil prices or regional gas prices, but any increase in supply will reduce prices a little.”

But he condemned the government’s levies as ‘harmful’ saying it was doing “extreme and immediate harm to Aberdeen”. The energy level has seen “1,000 jobs lost a month, while damaging the UK and his own climate ambitions” he added.

Mr Mayer added: “Shutting down the North Sea makes no sense even on its own terms. It will mean substituting own production for imports, which typically cause 50% more emissions from lower standards and transport. This increases our exposure to international markets and crisis events like the Ukraine conflict. Which is the exact argument Miliband uses to justify his push for unreliable renewables.”

The energy expert claimed that “the billions in lost receipts from North Sea taxes will in turn damage growth and reduce the resources available to pay for very green subsidy schemes he’s pedalling.” The boss of the UK energy regulator Tim Jarvis of Ofgem welcomed the changes to the price cap saying: “Today’s announcement will be welcome news for many households. “Wholesale energy prices have fallen in recent months, and we’re investing in our network to safeguard the future energy system.”