"Facing severe economic headwinds, the British prime minister, on her third day in office, announced emergency measures to freeze gas and electricity rates."
"LONDON — Scrambling to spare millions of households the pain of skyrocketing energy bills this winter, Britain’s new prime minister, Liz Truss, announced a sweeping plan on Thursday to freeze gas and electricity rates for two years, at a cost of tens of billions of pounds to the British Treasury.
The plan, rolled out by Ms. Truss on her third day in office, could represent the largest government intervention in the economy in decades, even bigger than the emergency measures during the coronavirus pandemic, when the state spent 78 billion pounds, about $90 billion, to keep people in their jobs.
The move is intended to shield people from a jolting increase in energy costs next month, when the annual price for electricity and natural gas for a typical British household was scheduled to jump to £3,549, from £1,971. Under the plan, average annual costs would be capped at £2,500. Costs for businesses, charities and schools would also be capped for six months, underscoring the extraordinary reach of the program."
Mark Landler and Eshe Nelson report for the New York Times September 8, 2022.
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