Sir John Major backs energy windfall tax to cut bills

Former Prime Minister Sir John Major has told the BBC that energy price rises are unjustified.

He said the government should impose a "one-off windfall tax" on energy firms if Whitehall was forced to pay out a lot of money this winter to help people who were being forced to choose between "keeping warm and eating".

A Downing Street spokesman said: "We have no plans for a windfall tax. It's an interesting contribution to the debate but we are focussed on getting people on to the lowest tariff and on the long term competitiveness of the market".