A broad and influential coalition of politicians, economists, civil society leaders, NGOs, religious leaders, celebrities and campaigners have urged the Government to tackle the predatory behaviour of big energy companies by introducing a new levy on their profits.

In recent months there has been growing concern at the increasingly unaffordable cost of energy as a result of stagnating incomes, volatile wholesale prices and over-charging by energy companies - average household bills for gas and electric are now in excess of £1200 per annum.

In October, the regulator OFGEM revealed that energy suppliers had increased their profits margins by 733%, from £15 to £125 per household.

At the same time the latest data for the UK estimates that at least 5.5m households are now in fuel poverty.

The campaign is launched in anticipation of big energy profits announced later this month. In the first 6 months of 2011 alone the big six energy companies made at least £3.5bn in profit.

Co-ordinated by the centre-left pressure group Compass, the new campaign for affordable energy  ‘END THE BIG 6 ENERGY FIX' has called on the Government to:

1) Impose a levy on the Big Six, with funds raised ring-fenced to help people with their energy costs, prioritising those living in fuel poverty, by making homes more energy efficient.

2) Give the regulator new powers to cap prices and eliminate excess profit.

3) Launch an independent public inquiry into the Big Six so that everyone knows the measures needed to create an energy market that serves the people before profit.

Tens of thousand of people are expected to sign a new petition at http://www.endthebigsixenergyfix.org.uk/ in the coming weeks, piling pressure on the Chancellor of the Exchequer to announce plans for a levy in the Budget in March.

The campaign will be targeting millions of people across Britain through using social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook.

Caroline Lucas, MP for Brighton Pavilion, said:

"It is completely outrageous that the Big Six energy giants are able to rake in eye-watering profits as people up and down the country are forced to choose between heating their homes and feeding their families.

"These companies are delivering a crucial public service, and it is now the Government's responsibility to hold them to account for failing to provide anything close to a fair deal for consumers.

"We need to see OFGEM taking a far stronger role in regulating this out-of-control industry so that we can end the Big 6 Energy fix once and for all."

Gavin Hayes, General Secretary of Compass said:

"The big energy companies continue to make massive profits whilst millions of Britons struggle to make ends meet and are driven into fuel poverty - this cannot be right.

"If the Government can impose a levy on the big oil companies to help motorists with their fuel bills, then why not impose a similar levy on big energy companies to help people with their energy bills?

"It's time to End the Big Six Energy Fix. I urge people to sign the petition."

Andy Atkins, Executive Director of Friends of the Earth said:

"It's scandalous that the major energy firms are netting billions of pounds in profit while over five million households in Britain struggle to heat their homes.

"The Big Six have kept us hooked on costly fossil fuels for too long - we're delighted that Compass supports a public inquiry into their stranglehold on the market.

"A levy on the Big Six could help the poorest families afford insulation, but we also need to shift to clean energy like wind and solar power if we are going to stabilise fuel bills long-term".

ENDS

Notes to editors

- End the Big Six Energy Fix is an independent campaign coalition convened by Compass, the campaign website is http://www.endthebigsixenergyfix.org.uk/.

- Compass is the UK's most influential political pressure group with over 50,000 members and supporters, more information at http://www.compassonline.org.uk/.

- The full campaign statement reads as follows:

"There is growing public concern about the behaviour of domestic energy suppliers - we believe it is time to end the big six energy fix.

In recent months energy companies have once again been exposed for over charging customers and making excessive profits at the expense of ordinary people, this is even more unfair at a time when the incomes of those on lower and middle incomes are being squeezed.

Energy is an essential human need - we all require affordable energy to light and heat our homes and to run our businesses - yet for many the stark reality is that energy is increasingly unaffordable.

For the first half of 2011 alone the big six energy companies made almost £3.5BN in profit. At the same time OFGEM revealed in October 2011 that the big six energy companies had increased their profit margins for dual-fuel deals by a staggering 733% (from £15 to £125 per household) with OFGEM's CEO conceding that ‘we do not have a fully competitive energy market'.

Indeed the average annual household bill for gas and electric has risen from approximately £500 in 2006, to over £1200 in 2011, whilst USwitch has predicted that by 2020 this could rise to a massive £3202.

Furthermore, it is estimated that at least 5.5M households are living in fuel poverty, with another 400,000 forced into fuel poverty with every 10% price hike.

So firstly, given this context, we believe now is the time for the Government to respond to the excessive profiteering of the big six energy companies by imposing a similar levy to that imposed on the oil companies.

Let's not forget that windfall taxation was used by the Conservative Government in 1981 to claw back the excessive profits of the High Street Banks, in 1997 by the Labour Government on the privatised utilities and the levy imposed by this Government on the big banks.

The Government has also responded to the excessive profits of North Sea oil companies by levying a permanent windfall tax - which has funded a reduction in fuel duty.

Revenues from any levy should be ring-fenced. Part of the money raised should be used to offer immediate help to those living in fuel poverty.

However the best strategy to eliminate fuel poverty forever is to ensure every home is insulated and highly energy efficient.

Therefore much of the money raised should be used to provide additional investment for home energy efficiency measures - starting with the homes of the fuel poor.

Such a Green New Deal would have the benefit of providing jobs for thousands currently out of work.

Secondly, to prevent the energy companies passing the cost of any levy onto customers and to make energy prices fairer, we further call on the Government to provide the regulator with new powers to cap prices, this could be linked to the wholesale price so that energy companies can still make a reasonable profit to guarantee future investment, yet eliminate excessive profit at the expense of people and planet.

Finally we call on the Government to launch an independent public inquiry into the big six energy companies so that OFGEM, the Government and the public know what measures are needed to have a market that serves people before its serves profit.

The time has come to end the big six energy fix - we urge the Government to act.