ELECTION rivals at Warrington have clashed over the rising cost of energy.
Nick Bent, Labour’s Parliamentary candidate for Warrington South has slammed Conservative MP David Mowat for voting against a resolution in the Commons to freeze energy bills.
But Mr Mowat has hit back by claiming rising energy bills have been caused by Labour’s failure to invest in 
energy infrastructure for 13 years.
Last week, Labour called on the Government to introduce an immediate freeze on energy bills.
But Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs defeated the resolution, with Mr Mowat voting against it.
Labour claim a 20 month freeze on gas and electricity bills would save households an average of £120 – or about £4.8 million in Warrington South.
Mr Bent said: “This is £4.8 million that could be spent in the local economy rather than going in the pockets of the Big Six energy firms.”
Across the constituency, Labour have given out 3,000 leaflets calling for a freeze on prices and collected more than 400 signatures on a petition calling for an immediate freeze.
But Mr Mowat retaliated: “Labour failed for 13 years to invest in our energy infrastructure. The result? Gas bills up by 133 per cent, electricity bills by 69 per cent and a reduction in the number of energy firms from 14 to the Big 6 they spend their time whingeing about today.
“In the last week, Labour have tried twice to raise the bills of hardworking families by imposing unrealistic climate change policies. It’s the same old Labour Party.
“Ed Miliband has already admitted he can’t actually freeze prices. Small energy companies – who really could help cut prices – say his plans will force them out of business and energy experts say that his plans will lead to massive price hikes both before and after – leaving many consumers worse off.
“To keep bills down in the long term, we need to invest in cheap nuclear and cheap shale gas. What Labour are offering is nothing more than a price con and hardworking families in Warrington are far too smart to fall for it.”
Pictured: Nick Bent (top) and David Mowat.
1 Comment
By no stretch of his skewed political imagination can David Mowat claim the present LibCon government has invested in cheap nuclear power generation. The terms agreed with EDF the French contractor nominated to build the next UK nuclear power station are more than overly generous, and for which British consumers will paying over the odds for the decades to come.