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The Martin Lewis Money Show - Season 17 Episode 4
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00:00Electricity use costs are to jump 5.1% on the 1st of January.
00:15Yet millions of you can beat this rise and save hundreds of pounds more with simple moves.
00:20And chances are you're also sitting on hundreds of pounds in unclaimed energy credit too.
00:27And now, literally right now, is the perfect time to check.
00:31I'll talk you through what you need to do, and later I'll be joined by the boss of Britain's biggest energy retailer, Octopus.
00:38And yes, I'll be putting your questions to him, the nice ones, and the not so nice.
00:42He's on his way on the back of a motorbike. Let's hope he makes it in time.
00:45The seat's empty, but hopefully he'll come soon.
00:47And in news you can use, we just learnt an hour ago the national minimum wage is set to rise.
00:53I'll tell you the new rates and show you, crucially, how to check if you're one of nearly 400,000 people who are on minimum wage but still being underpaid right now.
01:03Plus, how to also check which network has got the very best mobile signal in your home.
01:10I've got a warning that the top three, 400 quid bank switch is about to vanish.
01:14And more people will, one day, be able to get that unbeatable 50% boost to their savings.
01:21Now, to a woman so plugged in, she could power the whole studio.
01:26Jeanette Quatsy, everybody.
01:28Ooh, nice.
01:32I was so intimidated, did I want to set your name wrong?
01:34Thank you very much. Did you decide no?
01:36As always, of course, send us your questions on X or on threads.
01:39You can use the hashtag MartinLewis or you can send an email to the team, martinlewis at ITV.com.
01:44And always remember, if we don't use them tonight, we may use them in a future show.
01:48And a huge good evening to our wonderful studio audience. How are you doing?
01:51Wave those wallets. Wave your wallets, everybody.
01:54Right. Now, Martin, we had our Christmas show last week, didn't we?
01:58Big Christmas special. We covered free cash for Christmas.
02:01And Leanne has been in touch.
02:03And she's saying, like the lady in your audience,
02:05I have wanted to switch bank accounts since I've had since I was 11 years old.
02:09I'm now 50. I've finally done this. I've received my 175 pounds.
02:13Why did I wait so long? Thank you so much.
02:16I love you, Leanne. I'm delighted to hear it.
02:19I always think I've got two jobs.
02:21One, giving you the information, but also being a call to arms on when you need to act to be able to best look after yourself.
02:26So that's great news. Also in last week's show, you might remember,
02:28I talked about 28 firms who had incorrect information on their websites about return rights.
02:3324 had corrected them, four still hadn't.
02:36They all have now after we named them.
02:38So that's all fixed now.
02:40Your return rights on most big stores' websites, you can now actually trust them.
02:43So I know you're coming up to energy as well, but I wanted to ask you this before you do your practical questions,
02:48because I know it's something you normally wouldn't cover, but lots of people are asking this.
02:52The gas prices are at the levels we saw in 2018, but the energy prices that we pay are three times more,
02:58including the standing charge. How do they justify this?
03:01Well, the gas prices are actually a little bit hard in 2018, but nowhere near three times as high.
03:06I actually have quite a lot of that in today's show.
03:08There are some things going on that you need to know about that are causing that problem.
03:12You might not like it, but you need to understand it.
03:14So I will be covering that as we go through this time.
03:17OK, and we've got lovely Roberta here in the audience as well.
03:19A little bit nervous to ask the question, so I'm going to ask for her.
03:22Currently on a variable tariff, and you want to know if you should switch Roberta, is that right?
03:26Is that right? That's correct.
03:27And it's just a standard variable tariff.
03:29Standard variable.
03:30Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. You absolutely should. Watch this, my big briefing.
03:36Okie dokie. Look, let me explain. You may be surprised at this headline.
03:40Electricity usage costs up 5.1% in the new January price cap that lasts for three months.
03:46Now, that's because on Friday, if you saw the news, they said it was up 0.2%, yeah?
03:51That's what you saw. But that is not the full story.
03:55Now, just as a note, remember, it's a cap.
03:57It's not a cap on what you pay. If you use more, you'll pay more.
03:59It's a unit rate and standing charges that are caps on most firms' price at or near the cap.
04:03This is the real picture of what's going on.
04:06These are the new average direct debit price cap. It does vary by region.
04:10Electricity costs, the unit rate, the price you pay for each unit, kilowatt hour, going up 5.1%.
04:17The standard charge, the hated daily standing charge, is going up by 2%.
04:22The gas standing charge is going up by 3%.
04:27But the gas unit rate is dropping by 5.7%.
04:32Now, when you hodgepodge that altogether, it gives you an average 0.2% rise.
04:39But that's not the real picture.
04:41I mean, take someone who's got high electricity use and low or no gas.
04:45Well, in reality, they're going to see a rise of 4%.
04:48So while it looks like not much is happening in January, actually, there are significant price changes coming.
04:54Many of you, the majority of you, the huge majority of you, are paying hundreds of pounds more than you need to.
05:02And I want to talk you through that.
05:03I should also note, if you're on prepay, the moves are about the same.
05:06But it's 3% cheaper than standard direct debit on the price cap.
05:09Payment in receipt of bills is about 8% more.
05:11So let's get through.
05:12And Roberta, this is you.
05:13I'm so sorry.
05:14But ladies and gentlemen, I don't call it a price cap.
05:16I call it...
05:17Pants cap!
05:19A pants cap!
05:20Because if you can get off it, which most of you can, you should.
05:23So are you on the price cap?
05:25If you don't know, you probably are.
05:2763% of homes in England, Scotland and Wales are.
05:29Northern Ireland is on a different system.
05:30This doesn't apply to them.
05:32The price cap only applies to firm's bog standard default domestic tariff.
05:38Now, people get in touch with me and say,
05:40my standing charges are higher than the price cap on my fix.
05:43Yeah, because you're on a fix.
05:44It's not price capped.
05:45It doesn't have to follow the price cap rules.
05:46The price cap is only for these variable tariffs.
05:49So be really plain.
05:50You are capped if you've never switched.
05:53You are capped if you were on a fixed or a special deal and it ended and you did nothing.
05:57Are you the never switched or are you the fixed deal ended?
06:00I've been fixed before.
06:01So this is you here and you didn't fix again.
06:04You're not capped if you're on a fixed or a specialist tariff.
06:08Then the prices are not locked in.
06:10They can charge what they like and it's up to the competitive market.
06:12Now, just to be really plain, if you're not sure, if you recognise one of these names,
06:16these are all price cap names, they tend to be called standard or standard variable or flexible.
06:20Those are the things that go in and you can read them on the screen there.
06:23So if you're price capped, you're probably paying too much.
06:26OK.
06:27Well, TJ has been in touch.
06:28He's tweeted in saying what I don't understand is that Ofgem are again announcing increases in energy bills.
06:33But then Martin says we have tariffs out there 10% lower and more offers next week.
06:38So basically, cheaper energy can be given to people, yet Ofgem refused to do it.
06:44The price cap was introduced to be a backstop tariff for the people who could not engage in the competitive switching market
06:53to make sure that those vulnerable people could not be ripped off.
06:56And when it was first introduced, it was a minority of the population.
07:00Then we had the energy crisis.
07:02Firms went bust.
07:03People got nervous.
07:04And suddenly, virtually everybody was on the price cap.
07:07And still 63% of homes are on the price cap.
07:11It was not meant to be a tariff you were on.
07:15I call it a pants cap, not because implicitly it's wrong, because it's trying to protect, you know,
07:19a 90-year-old with onset dementia who would never switch.
07:22But those of you who can switch, Roberta, you should do.
07:25That's what's going on there.
07:26You have to understand the price cap.
07:28You shouldn't be on it.
07:29Ofgem don't want you on it.
07:30The government don't want you on it.
07:31The firms probably do want you on it.
07:32I don't want you on it.
07:33That's the most important thing.
07:35OK.
07:36Shall I move on?
07:37OK, we're getting into...
07:38This is the big bit now.
07:39This is the graph.
07:40And try and go slowly so you understand, because this is what you need to know.
07:43So...
07:47These are the wholesale rates.
07:49These are gas, and the electricity tends to move with gas.
07:52How they have moved since September.
07:54You'll see they were high, and then they've come down relatively.
07:58Now, I should say, before that, we had the energy crisis.
08:00They were nearly five times as high.
08:02If you go back to 2018, 2019, before the energy crisis,
08:05well, they were about this sort of level then.
08:08So they nearly have come down, not the whole way, but back to where they are.
08:11Now, let's look at the price cap.
08:14There we go.
08:15It's gone up.
08:16It's gone up.
08:17It's gone down.
08:18And these are recent ones, and it's gone up 0.2%.
08:21But what I really want to bring out to you is this 0.2% rise is based on the period
08:30from the middle of August till the middle of November.
08:33And those are the wholesale rates, the underlying wholesale rates for them.
08:37I'd like you to compare that to the prior three months.
08:40There we go.
08:41Which you say is higher?
08:42This one or this one?
08:44The first one?
08:45Yeah.
08:46It was.
08:47Wholesale rates have come down.
08:49But the price cap is going up.
08:52And I've not said that before.
08:54And the answer to why it's going up is because of policy costs.
08:59Investment in nuclear.
09:01Debt forgiveness for people who cannot afford to repay their debts.
09:05The warm home discount costs because that's been extended to more vulnerable people.
09:09Ultimately, what we have, and whether those are rights or wrongs is a political decision.
09:15But what I find quite bizarre, policy costs are put on your electricity bills because electricity is universal.
09:23The government is trying to encourage more people to use electricity with things like heat pumps and less people to use gas.
09:29But because they put all their policy costs on electricity, electricity prices are going up.
09:35And as the wholesale rate has dropped, gas prices are going down.
09:38So we are in a perverse situation.
09:42The government wants you to use electricity.
09:44But its policy moves are putting electricity up and gas prices down.
09:49Yeah.
09:50Let's have a look at what makes up your bill.
09:52Because this is what you were asking me about before, Jeanette.
09:54So let's go through it.
09:56So on the price cap, 40% is the actual underlying gas and electricity used.
10:0122.6% is the cost of infrastructure, moving it around the net and the grid and getting some new renewables on board.
10:0813.4% is policy and government schemes.
10:11These are going up.
10:12Levies and green is 7.3% vulnerable customer support.
10:16The warm home discount is 6.1%.
10:1811% is operational costs of the firms that you're going in there.
10:234.8% is VAT.
10:25For those thinking, why isn't it 5%?
10:26It's because the reciprocal 105 divided by, don't worry.
10:29Unpaid bills, people not paying their bills, 3%.
10:34Profits, 2.6% more or less than you thought.
10:38Profits, 2.6% and 1.6% headroom, which is for other things.
10:42And some, if that isn't used, it can sneak into profits.
10:45That's what's making up your bills.
10:47So, with that in mind, let's have a look at the prediction for where the price cap is going to go in future.
10:54Here we are.
10:55Up in April.
10:57Now, that up in April is not due to wholesale rates.
11:02That up in April is because it's predicted we're going to pay more for connecting renewables in distant parts of the country.
11:09We're going to pay more because so many people are moving to heat pumps in electric vehicles.
11:13There's more stress on the grid.
11:14And we need to build capacity on there.
11:16Again, using electricity, even though we bring the gas price down.
11:19So, wholesale rates could bring this down if the wholesale rates, the price of gas and electricity got cheaper.
11:25But we're on a start point that it's going to go up if that doesn't happen.
11:28In fact, they've already come down a bit.
11:30This was 4%.
11:31And the truth is, it is very likely our energy bills, unless there is intervention, are going to keep going up because of the investment that's needed until the mid-2030s over the big picture.
11:41So, what am I going to tell you to do about it?
11:44Well, that's where it's going to go.
11:47Where's the cheapest fix on the market?
11:50There.
11:51So, look.
11:52We're currently here.
11:55This is about typical bill, just under £200 cheaper.
11:58If you use more, it'll be much more cheaper.
12:00But the most important thing about doing this at this time of year, we just have the announcement of the price cap till March.
12:05We now know what your price, who's not fixed, will be until the end of March.
12:10That's the high use period.
12:11That's when you're using your gas and electricity.
12:13And we know what you're going to pay now.
12:15And this is the cheapest fix on the market.
12:1711% cheaper.
12:19And it's predicted afterwards it's going up, not down after that.
12:22And then maybe come down a little bit.
12:24So, what the huge probability is that a fix now, not only will it give you peace of mind, you know exactly what you're going to pay, which is very important.
12:31Once you fix, the rates are locked in.
12:33They cannot move for a year.
12:35But it will also be an instant saving.
12:37And you'll save over the high use period.
12:39And you will very likely, less guaranteed, but crystal ballgazing, continue to save after that.
12:45Which is why I say the price cap is a...
12:49Pants cap.
12:50Pants cap.
12:51I think I proved my point.
12:52Yes, it's a pants cap.
12:53So...
12:54We've got success on this from Miriam who watched this and saw the graph on a previous show.
13:01And she's saying, I watched your last full show on energy about fixing energy bills.
13:05I wanted to say thank you as I saved myself £1,478 from swapping.
13:10Amazing.
13:11Even I think that's an enormous amount.
13:16I suppose she went for an 18 month fix and that's the saving over the 18 months.
13:20She's probably got £5,000 a year energy bills anyway and the differential was about 20% because that's really big.
13:25She saved money.
13:26I'm just saying, £2,500 you're doing is more normal, not that type of level, yeah.
13:30But that was really good.
13:31And this as well from Julie, because she's speaking of fixes here, she's asking,
13:34We've been with our provider for a number of years and if I want to go onto a fixed rate, I have to have a smart meter?
13:39Why does that need to happen?
13:40Well, that was very common a year or two ago that the cheapest fixes will require you to have a smart meter.
13:44Most of them don't anymore.
13:45Right.
13:46In fact, I'm about to go on to the cheapest fixes now.
13:48None of these require you to have a smart meter.
13:51So ditch and switch and go to someone else if you don't want the smart meter.
13:55Although I like a smart meter.
13:56OK.
13:57Fixing gives you peace of mind that the rate won't change.
13:59Although, of course, if you use more, you pay more and your direct debit would go up.
14:02Cheapest always depends on your region and how much you use.
14:05So these are not locked in cheapest for you because it depends.
14:08Use a whole of market comparison site.
14:11One that defaults to showing you all the tariffs.
14:13Many of them.
14:14Almost all of them.
14:15Hide the tariffs that don't pay them.
14:17So if you want to see it, you have to tick a little box that you'll struggle to find.
14:20And some of the cheapest tariffs will be missing there.
14:23And worth noting, by the way, comparison sites these days, you don't even need to know your usage.
14:27They actually know.
14:28Once they know who you are, you've done it.
14:30And they know your usage.
14:31You don't have to put any details in.
14:32It's very simple.
14:33So what are the cheapest fixes?
14:34Well, you've got a fight between Eon Next and Outfox at the top around 10 and a half to 11% cheaper.
14:40You've got an Octopus One, which is a 12-1 fix.
14:42The Eon Next is a longer fix.
14:44So you've got a little bit.
14:45That one actually locks you in until the end of next winter, which is quite useful.
14:48The Octopus One, the reason I'm highlighting that is unlike the others, which you've got early eggs,
14:53exit fees, though I don't see you'd need to leave because prices are unlikely to be coming down.
14:56There's no early exit fees on the Octopus One.
14:58So if you want an absolutely no-risk fix that you could get out if you needed, it's that.
15:02You've got an even longer 18-month fix with Eon Next.
15:05And I put this one at the bottom.
15:07It's an EDF fix.
15:08This is the cheapest fix for people who've got smart prepayment meters.
15:12The other fixes are not available to them.
15:14That's the price on smart prepay.
15:16It's actually cheaper if you're on other forms of payment.
15:18If you're on old-school prepay key and card meters,
15:21you're going to have to stay on the price cap because there aren't any fixes or cheap tariffs available for you
15:25that I know of at the moment, I'm afraid.
15:27So that's what's going on.
15:28All available for new and existing customers.
15:30None of these for Northern Ireland.
15:31Totally different energy system.
15:33Question for you.
15:34Comes from another Martin.
15:35Not yourself.
15:36So it says, my current energy tariff is due to expire mid-December.
15:39Is that the right time to fix it again?
15:41Or should I just wait until the spring energy cap is set?
15:43I'm going to hold the last bit because...
15:45Okay.
15:46First thing to understand, if you're on a fix, within the last 50 days of your fix,
15:51so day 49 towards the fix, they cannot charge you an early exit penalty.
15:54You are free to leave.
15:56So at that point, I would do a comparison.
15:58If the new fix is cheaper than your existing fix, ditch the existing fix and go to the new fix.
16:05If it's the other way round and your existing fix is the cheaper one, well, I would stick on it until the very last day
16:11because it's cheaper than the cheapest fix on the market.
16:13You may as well stick there.
16:14As for this waiting until the spring energy cap.
16:16Okay.
16:17I get this question so often.
16:18Let me try and make this plain.
16:20The cost you can fix that has nothing to do with the price cap whatsoever.
16:24It is totally chalk and a duck.
16:26They are not related in any way.
16:28They have nothing in common.
16:30So the price cap is based on the time lag of what has happened in the past.
16:34The rate you can fix that is what's going on in the market today.
16:37So it's almost looking right now and in the future.
16:40So fixes move up and down.
16:41So the fact the spring energy cap has nothing to do with the price of a fix.
16:45That's just about the price of the price cap.
16:47And people always say, would it be better to wait till the price cap?
16:49It's irrelevant.
16:50That's about the past.
16:51The rate you can fix that depends on the now.
16:53We don't know what's going to happen in the future.
16:55So if you can save by fixing, you don't have an exit penalty fix.
16:59If you can't save by fixing, wait as long as you can on your current fix,
17:02and then don't go on to the price cap, go on to the cheapest fix available at the time.
17:05Make sense?
17:06Yes.
17:07Okay.
17:08Kerry.
17:09Kerry's also got a question for you here.
17:11Kerry's asking, how do I work out if I should fix my electricity tariff
17:15when I have a cheap EV charging at night rate?
17:18I'm with Octopus.
17:19I feel like I'm on the episode of Mastermind at the moment.
17:22Okay.
17:23Right.
17:24So the Octopus are most of the two-tier EV tariffs.
17:27They basically, you pay the price cap rate for electricity during the day,
17:30and then you get a super cheap rate, say, 9p a kilowatt hour at night.
17:34So really, the question is, how much of your energy do you use in that cheap period
17:40between, say, midnight and 5am in the morning when you get super cheap rates?
17:44Not just your car.
17:45Have you shifted other uses there?
17:47Shift as much as you can.
17:48Not your tumble dryer.
17:49Fire risk if you put a tumble dryer on overnight while you're sleeping.
17:52If that's over 25% of your energy uses at the very cheap period,
17:56you're probably better on an EV tariff.
17:58If it's not, you're probably better just going for the cheapest fix.
18:01It's a very rough rule of thumb, but hopefully that helps to make sense.
18:04Let's go through to some of those more specialist tariffs now, four of them.
18:08If you're a very low user, the EDF tracker is basically a price cap tariff
18:13but with £50 lower standing charges.
18:15It lasts a year.
18:16It's best for those really low usage, under about £1,000 a year of use.
18:20Just before that...
18:21Sure.
18:22I need a sip of water.
18:23Yes, sorry, right.
18:24So, Phil actually, just on that, he's asking,
18:26is it best waiting to see if the standing charges come down in the spring?
18:29Standing charges aren't coming down in the spring on the price cap.
18:32What's happening in the spring is the regulator has said
18:35that firms will have to offer a low or no standing charge switchable deal.
18:39I'll be asking Greg if he turns up.
18:41It's still very empty, slightly worried about that one.
18:45You may want to wait, but we just don't have a clue
18:49at what rate they're going to offer those
18:50and how much they're going to charge on the others.
18:52So, you might want to just go in for this low user option now.
18:54I simply don't have the data to be able to answer that properly, I'm afraid.
18:57OK.
18:58Got an electric car, we've covered it.
19:00I talked about the two tariff rates, which most of them are.
19:03The alternative is that OVO and Scottish Power,
19:06you can get one of their normal tariffs and then they give you a cheaper rate
19:10just for charging your car through a special charger,
19:12which may be good if they had a cheap fix,
19:14although neither of those two currently offer the cheapest fixes,
19:17but it is worth watching out for.
19:19We'll move on to sophisticated users now.
19:21If that's not you, just move on past this bit.
19:24Rapid price change tariffs can lead to big savings.
19:27These are mainly for existing Octopus customers.
19:31He's not here, so I can tell you this.
19:33What I would do if you want it,
19:34you switch to Octopus's standard variable tariff.
19:37Once that's signed up, the next day, you switch to one of these
19:40because you're now an existing Octopus customer.
19:42You've got the Agile, which is electricity only,
19:44prices change every half hour,
19:46and you've got the Tracker, prices change daily.
19:48Let's have a look at a graph on that, OK?
19:50So, here you go.
19:52This is the price cap.
19:54Cheapest fix would be about here.
19:55This is Tracker over the last seven days.
19:58It's not been that cheap.
19:59It can be cheaper if wholesale rates are going down,
20:01but it's generally cheaper.
20:02This is Agile.
20:04Peak rates between four and eight at night
20:07can be very, very expensive.
20:09But overnight, it can be super cheap,
20:12and there are times you get paid for using electricity.
20:17The cost is negative at the right moment.
20:20So, if you are a sophisticated user who can move,
20:23maybe you've got a battery storage in your house,
20:25who can move your usage away from peak time
20:27and into the other times of the day,
20:29it can be incredibly cheap,
20:30but it isn't for people who don't know what they're doing.
20:32And then I'll finish on my last one.
20:34I think you've had enough.
20:35I think it's got too complicated.
20:37It's my last one. I promise no more.
20:38And then I'll take some questions.
20:40If you've got solar panels, many people say,
20:42should I get an all-in-one deal where I get my solar panels
20:44and I get my energy from the same firm?
20:46Well, you can be paid a lot more for your solar export guarantee
20:49for generating electricity if you do.
20:52Again, it just depends.
20:54My rough rule of thumb is over 15% of the energy you use,
20:57you are generating and sending to the grid,
20:59then linking them together is worth it.
21:01If it's less than that,
21:02if you're not sending that much to the grid,
21:04just go for the cheapest energy deal that you possibly can.
21:06I'm done with that.
21:07Yeah, brilliant stuff. Well done, Martin.
21:10Well, coming up,
21:11energy firms are sitting on over £3 billion worth of your direct debit credit.
21:16Martin's going to show you how to reclaim what's yours.
21:18We'll see you in full.
21:33Welcome back. We're talking energy bills.
21:34We talked about fixing in the first part.
21:36Roberta, are you going to fix now?
21:37That's good to hear.
21:38Fantastic.
21:39I'm glad the explanation worked.
21:41Greg Jackson is here.
21:42He's got off the motorbike.
21:43He's in.
21:44Welcome to Greg.
21:45Jeanette, what's going on online?
21:49Yeah, it's really, really busy online.
21:50Lots of people asking about direct debit credits
21:53and getting that credit back.
21:54Coming to that.
21:55We are going to come into that.
21:56But also online,
21:57they're talking about the Chancellor
21:58perhaps reducing VAT on energy bills.
22:00What will change or impact any of that, do you think?
22:03I don't think that's what's going to happen.
22:05I think the most likely thing she'll do is she'll take a chunk off energy bills.
22:08I would like to see her reducing money off the standing charge
22:10because then everybody gets the same amount, flat rate.
22:12I think it's more likely she'll take some of the renewable obligation
22:16off the unit rate that you pay for electricity.
22:20So that would mean the people who use more will save more on the back of it.
22:23Now, the important thing to understand about this
22:25is that should come off everybody's bills, whether you're on a fix,
22:28whatever type of deal you are.
22:29If it only came off the price cap, it would be absolutely perverse
22:32because it means it would go against the market competition philosophy
22:35that it wants it work on.
22:36So my suspicion is we're going to see an announcement that effectively takes
22:392 to 3p off the unit rate that everybody is paying for their energy bills.
22:45When that will come in, I don't know.
22:47But you know what? I've got the boss of the biggest energy company here.
22:50Greg, would you think the same? That's my guess.
22:52Yeah, I think it would make more sense.
22:53I mean, the renewable obligation is a sort of historical research
22:56and development in energy.
22:58It's crazy it stays on our bills for maybe years to come.
23:01So it would be good to get rid.
23:02OK, so we're both thinking the same thing.
23:04So there's probably a good chance that will happen.
23:06Or maybe not.
23:07Direct debit, energy, credit.
23:09Rebecca's got the question.
23:10I think a lot of people are asking, our direct debit is £200 a month
23:13and we have £746 in credit.
23:16Should I leave it there or request some back for Christmas?
23:19OK, we're getting into the sexiest piece of energy now.
23:21The thing that I really enjoyed.
23:22There is a sine wave coming, everybody.
23:24There is a sine wave coming.
23:25The answer to your question is yes,
23:27you in your circumstances will get some back.
23:29But let me carry on with my big briefing to explain why.
23:32Here you go.
23:33Monthly direct debit is designed to spread the cost
23:36so that you don't have huge bills in winter when you're using most.
23:39Effectively, you overpay in summer and you underpay in winter.
23:43So the first thing you do before you get to that, Rebecca,
23:45is you check that your direct debit isn't too high.
23:47If you've got a working smart meter, it's doing it automatically,
23:50sending the meter readings in.
23:52If not, then do a meter reading yourself.
23:54Make sure the company has factored in your latest meter reading
23:56before you go any further and that you're not in any debt.
23:59There are online is my direct debit credit calculators.
24:02And if it's too high, then you want them to lower your direct debit.
24:04But where Rebecca's really asking about is this one.
24:07Are you owed hundreds of pounds of credit?
24:09Energy firms collectively are sitting on over three billion pounds of our money.
24:13Some of it they should be.
24:15Some of it they shouldn't be.
24:17And this is the perfect time to check because of the energy direct debit cycle.
24:23I wasn't asking you to do that, but I really enjoyed it.
24:27We'll do that after the show ends.
24:29Right. Let me get you onto this. Here we go.
24:31So this is the energy direct debit cycle.
24:37It does depend on when you started, but this is to give you an idea.
24:40What happens during the year is that as you're in those winter months,
24:43you start to get more and more into debt or you use up your credit.
24:46And then once you start to move into summer in about May,
24:49it bottoms out and you start to build up the amount of credit you've got until
24:53the middle of November.
24:55I.e. right now when you are in the maximum amount of credit and you want to be,
25:02you've stored it up like a squirrel scoring up its nuts in order to be able to eat them
25:07when you're hibernating in the winter.
25:09So this is that point I should say.
25:11I mean, I wanted more graphs.
25:12I wanted one that goes like that.
25:13If you start in May and I want one that goes like that,
25:15but they wouldn't let me.
25:16They said we just will do.
25:17So this, what my general rule of thumb is at this point of the year,
25:21right this point of the year, why it's the perfect time.
25:23If you're more than two months of energy direct debit in credit,
25:29then you want to get the excess back.
25:31That's my rule more than two months.
25:33So let's do the math for Rebecca.
25:35Two months is 400 pounds.
25:37I'll be asking for 350 quid back because she's got 750 pounds in credit.
25:40And that's how it moves.
25:41Let's move on to the next graphic.
25:43I think I've covered the rest of that there.
25:45Final quick note for you.
25:47By the way, you just asked the firm for the excess.
25:49Final quick note.
25:50If you are sitting there going,
25:51I hate direct debit.
25:52You know, I hate monthly direct debit.
25:53They come in.
25:54They're charging me too much.
25:55I don't like, I don't trust them.
25:56I don't trust them, Greg.
25:57I don't trust them.
25:58That's the most important point on this chart.
26:00There you go.
26:01If you say, I just want to pay when I get a bill,
26:04you pay 8% more, right?
26:06You don't want that.
26:07If you're really going to do that,
26:08ask for variable direct debit.
26:10That's where you are billed each month for what you use,
26:13and they take that amount out by direct debit,
26:15but you're still on the direct debit rate,
26:17so it's 8% cheaper.
26:18So if you're going to get rid of your monthly direct debit,
26:20shift the variable direct debit,
26:22not payment in receipt of bills.
26:23Greg agrees over there.
26:24Yes.
26:25I checked a bit earlier when you were talking about this.
26:27I checked.
26:28I'm £290 in credit,
26:29and we pay around £220 every month direct debit.
26:32Oh, Jeanette.
26:33That's why I love you.
26:34Bring me a graph back.
26:35I mean, you're like perfect sweet spot,
26:37just over one month in energy direct debit credit,
26:40so you don't need to do anything.
26:41You've got your storage,
26:42you're ready for the winter,
26:43you don't want that money back
26:44because it's going to help you during the winter months.
26:45That's absolutely perfect.
26:46Perfect stuff.
26:47Right, Mark has been in touch,
26:48and Mark is saying about this time last year,
26:51of course we do this annually.
26:52It's a cycle, yeah.
26:53Every year at the same time.
26:54I went to my energy supplier for a credit refund
26:56and got back £1,002
26:58and got my monthly direct debit down to £38
27:00instead of £136 too.
27:02Wow.
27:03Thanks.
27:04So my observation on that is that monthly direct debit is too low.
27:10What I suspect happened is he had a lot more credit.
27:12He got a grand back and they said,
27:13we won't give you the rest back,
27:14but we'll just lower your direct debit until you catch up
27:17because £38 is too little for almost everybody on a direct debit.
27:21I mean, it's not that much more than just a standing charge.
27:23Yes.
27:24Brilliant stuff.
27:25I think we can go to break now.
27:27Yeah, so coming up next,
27:29Martin puts your questions to the boss of Britain's biggest energy retailer
27:33who has 24% of the market share.
27:35So don't go anywhere.
27:36Welcome back to our show all about energy bills.
27:50I've talked about the importance of fixing and getting off the price cap.
27:53We've talked about getting your energy credit back if you're too much in credit.
27:56Now we're talking to the boss of Britain's biggest energy company.
27:59Seems strange to say that.
28:00You're not British Gas.
28:01You've overtaken British Gas.
28:02Greg Jackson, by the way, everybody.
28:03Hello.
28:04Give him a round of applause.
28:05Hello.
28:07Yeah, I mean, that's quite a change.
28:11Yeah, I think, look, energy is more competitive than it used to be
28:14and I think there's not just us.
28:16There's a whole load of companies you were showing on the screen earlier
28:18that either didn't exist, you know, a decade ago
28:21or, you know, new versions of old companies.
28:24That's good for customers.
28:26I've got to say, the rest of the system,
28:28all those fixed costs you were talking about earlier,
28:30that's a real problem.
28:31Well, yeah, so I was talking about how it was perverse
28:33that they're trying to encourage people to use electricity,
28:36but because of the way they do the policy
28:37and they put all the costs on electricity bills,
28:39electricity prices are going up and gas are going down.
28:41It's not going to help people get heat pumps,
28:42which is what they want, is it?
28:43No, I mean, I completely agree with you.
28:45And I think, look, those high electricity costs
28:48are because of policy choices.
28:50They've been made over decades,
28:51but, you know, it's time we revisited them
28:53because we've got to get electricity costs down,
28:55not just to get people to electrify,
28:57but because people can't afford their bills.
28:58Well, look, I mean, we shouldn't be doing this,
29:00but I'll just have a moment for myself.
29:01One of the things I find really difficult
29:03is we put all these costs onto electricity bills.
29:05Electricity bills are regressive.
29:07Now, really rich people don't have proportionately
29:09higher energy bills compared to poor people.
29:11So a much better way to look after people would be
29:14take the costs off electricity bills
29:15and put them on general taxation and bring energy bills down,
29:17and then it would be a more progressive system.
29:19But I'm not here to make those type of points.
29:21So let me ask you the first question.
29:22This came from a Martin.
29:23It's not me, I promise.
29:24Why are energy prices in the UK higher than practically anywhere else in the world?
29:28How can you justify record profits year on year
29:32when they're in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis?
29:34Why should the UK not impose a windfall tax on excessive profits?
29:38Yeah, I mean, first of all, I should say, as energy retailers,
29:41our profits are capped by the price cap.
29:43And so, you know...
29:442.6%.
29:45Yeah, and in fact, we don't make that because of things like the fixed deals.
29:48So on an average £1,700 bill, we made about £10 or £11 profit last year.
29:54That's not the reason for high bills.
29:56It's all of that waste in the system.
29:58Now, you talk about international comparisons.
30:00It's worth saying they're hard to make because taxes vary by country,
30:04and the way that they put them on bills or in general taxation varies.
30:07But the UK, along with Germany, have got the highest consumer prices,
30:10and we've got by far the highest prices for businesses,
30:13small businesses as well as big industry.
30:15And that's because, you know, countries like us in Germany
30:18have followed roughly the same policies for the last decade,
30:21and we now need to revisit those
30:23because they're loading more and more fixed costs into the system.
30:25In fact, Martin, let me tell you,
30:27there are so many fixed costs in the system now and planned
30:30that even if the wholesale price of electricity falls to zero,
30:34bills probably wouldn't come down.
30:36Wow.
30:37But there are people making excess profits.
30:39There are oil and gas companies out there who have made billions
30:42or, you know, getting on for trillions of pounds.
30:44Because of the high energy prices.
30:47And this, this, so you're a retailer.
30:49I don't know if you have a generation arm or not.
30:51We do, but it's, um, we don't actually own the generation.
30:55We manage it on behalf of other.
30:57Fine. I mean, they've made, they have made excessive profits, haven't they?
31:00Undoubtedly.
31:01The profits that are being made are from those global oil and gas companies,
31:05many of whom are not British, by the way, because we're buying our gas from Qatar
31:08and from the USA and elsewhere.
31:10Um, and, uh, particularly some of the very big, highly subsidized renewable generators
31:15who are getting paid at a rate that's attached to the gas price.
31:18When gas was particularly expensive, they were earning a lot.
31:21Now there was a bit of a windfall tax there.
31:24But where we are today, you know, there's a lot of profit made in that sector.
31:28They're set to be a lot more.
31:30And there are two things that make it worse, Martin.
31:31The first is we built loads of these wind farms where there's no grid.
31:35It's like building a factory where there's no roads.
31:38But we pay these wind farms for the electricity they can't deliver.
31:42And then we're going to pay a fortune to build new grids to connect them.
31:46And that would be part of the reason the price is going up in April
31:48is to connect some of those to the grid, isn't it?
31:50Yeah. And that cost is going to keep going up.
31:51And look, we also spent, I don't know, we spent about 1.3 billion pounds a year
31:55turning off wind farms.
31:57I want to go do some more practical stuff with you now.
31:59Kelly commented, we know there's going to be an off-gen rules
32:01that companies have to have low or no standing charge tariffs offered
32:04coming in in the spring.
32:05Will Octopus have a no standing charge tariff in 2026?
32:10Can you tell us?
32:11Yeah, I don't know yet. We're working on it.
32:12I think these go back to those fixed cost problems
32:15because the day that you switch to us, we get charged,
32:19or essentially over the next year, we will get 200 pounds of fixed costs,
32:22even if you use no power.
32:23And the question for energy companies is, you know, obviously,
32:26if everyone was costing 200 quid and not spending anything,
32:29you know, companies wouldn't survive.
32:31So, first of all, we will do what we can.
32:34But my worry is people will have very high unit rates to recoup that money,
32:38and it'll end up not being good value for most people.
32:40Which is why I would complain it wasn't within the price cap
32:42because there's no price regulation on the unit rates.
32:44But that's getting a bit too complicated for the audience, I suspect.
32:46Dawn, I would like to put a question to the person in charge of Octopus Energy.
32:50I sadly lost my husband almost a year ago and had to pay all the bills.
32:54I have to pay the bills, but I'm struggling to pay the energy bill from your company
32:57as I claim Universal Credit and PIP.
32:59Is there any other way I can pay the bill?
33:01What would you say to Dawn?
33:02Well, first of all, I'm really sorry about her loss.
33:04I know how hard it is dealing with bills when spouses die.
33:08If Dawn gets in touch, there's a bunch of things we can do.
33:11First of all, we can make sure she's getting all the support from a whole bunch of agencies.
33:15We've got ways of looking that up for her so we can help with more than just energy bills.
33:19On energy, I think this year we've given 70,000 people standing charge holidays.
33:24It makes a big difference when they're struggling.
33:26If they're in debt, we can do you pay, we pay.
33:29For every pound they pay, we'll pay a pound.
33:32And then there's, you know, we've got 300,000 customers where we've visited them
33:37to help reduce energy wastage so they can save money.
33:40So there's a lot of ways we can help.
33:42The main thing is, look, our company and others, if you phone them up,
33:46there are a lot of ways they can help.
33:48And some of them are a lot more helpful than you.
33:50If we find you've got access to more support and benefits elsewhere,
33:53it's bigger than your energy bill.
33:55I would echo that.
33:56Always talk to your energy firm first if you're struggling.
33:58On this one, there are special rules.
34:00You can put yourself on the Vulnerable Customer Priority Services Register,
34:02which you have to be treated in special ways.
34:04Going quiet isn't the right way.
34:06Look, there are lots of these octopus questions.
34:08I should say whichever firm we had on would probably have similar ones.
34:10Mina, how can energy companies keep money and refuse to refund, Denny?
34:14I have nearly £700 sitting in Octopus's account and has asked for a £200 refund as I needed to pay other bills.
34:20They are refusing but have reduced my direct debit.
34:23Why is my money treated as theirs?
34:25That doesn't sound right to me, Greg.
34:26Why is that happening?
34:27No, it doesn't.
34:28If Mina emails me, greg.jackson at octopus.energy, I'll have that looked at.
34:32And anybody else in that situation, if they have too much energy credit, you shouldn't be reducing the direct debit.
34:36You should be giving them their money, shouldn't you?
34:38You are. In fact, I think we refund 25,000 customers a week.
34:4270% of them are self-serve online.
34:44So there's no one getting in the way.
34:46There are one or two things.
34:47You need to make sure you've got up-to-date meter readings,
34:49because otherwise we don't know the real state of your account.
34:51And the other is, obviously, if you've got a smart meter, that will automatically be the case.
34:55And then the other one is, there are actually quite a lot of fraud attempts on refunds.
34:59So sometimes there's a few extra days delay for fraud checking, but it shouldn't stop it.
35:03OK.
35:04And you'll look after that one particular case, but anybody else should be getting in touch.
35:07And you can quote what he has said on the programme.
35:09Rewind it back.
35:10Watch it on ITVX.
35:11Quote his words down and say, Greg Jackson told me this.
35:14That'll help the customer service.
35:15Can I say, Martin, there's one other thing.
35:16You showed the sine wave earlier, the curve.
35:18For Octopus, every customer that's on a normal tariff, we do a personalised version of that,
35:23so they can see the extent to which they're paying too much, too little,
35:26they've got too much credit or too little credit.
35:28It's called the balance forecaster.
35:30It's well worth checking.
35:31I can't play favourites, but I love the idea of a personalised sine curve.
35:34Anyway.
35:35So, Jenny.
35:37Jenny.
35:38I'm going to sub Jenny's question because it's complicated.
35:41What she's saying is, if we take the pain of increasing energy bills now,
35:44is there a guarantee that the money from the increases will go to renewable infrastructure
35:48and bring bills down in the future?
35:50Now, this is policy, this is government, but you probably know better than anyone.
35:54Do you think the investments we're making are going to mean cheaper bills?
35:57And when will we see cheaper bills?
35:59Yeah.
36:00So, it's definitely going into that infrastructure, renewables plus the grid to connect it.
36:05The models suggest that we'll see cheaper bills from maybe 2035, possibly a bit earlier
36:11if we're faster building.
36:12That's not good enough.
36:13That's why we say that we need to look now at where can we save money on those new network bills
36:18so we can cut bills a lot sooner.
36:20We can't wait that long.
36:22And one thing I would say, Martin, earlier, you mentioned some of that network build was for things like electric vehicles
36:26because they put more strain on the grid.
36:28But actually, when you talked about smart tariff electric vehicles, it reduces the strain on the grid.
36:33And so, one thing we should be doing is saying, look, if we can make electricity cheaper, put more electric cars on the road,
36:39it actually cuts these infrastructure costs for everybody.
36:42And I think we need to have a bit more vision about doing this faster and cheaper.
36:46I have to say, time of use tariffs, and you are transparent on yours and publish the algorithm,
36:49my great concern is if everybody's doing a tariff that changes every half hour,
36:53how do these people find who their cheapest one is if it moves every half hour?
36:56And so, I think that we should have rules in place that say, firms who are going to do time of use tariffs,
37:02they must publish the underlying algorithm and the cost base and guarantee that that will last for an amount of time
37:07so that people can help and do some comparisons.
37:10We're getting very complicated. I hope it hasn't too complicated for those of you at home,
37:13but I think this is important stuff.
37:15Eileen, do you think it's fair that everyone is having an extra £6 charge added to their energy bills
37:20to cover the debt owed to utility companies?
37:22A lot of people go without rather than going to debt, so why should they pay less for energy firms to get more money?
37:27You know, this is a really difficult area, because I know that most people do want to pay their bills,
37:32but I see messages from customers now that are saying, I can't afford my bills, why are they going up to pay for other people's?
37:39I think there's a couple of things. First of all, you know, we've got to recognise that one of the causes of the debt is bills are too high.
37:46That's why you and I are both saying we need policy change to bring them down fast.
37:51I think the second thing is that how energy companies behave makes a big difference.
37:56If companies are transparent, if you've got easy-to-read bills so people know where they stand,
38:00then much less life is getting to debt.
38:02But the most important thing is if people phone up, we can find a lot of ways of helping you get out of it
38:06without adding to other people's bills.
38:08I'm sorry, I'm going to have to go to a break now. I'll try and get one or two more questions after the break.
38:11Greg Jackson from Octopus Energy, everybody. Thank you very much.
38:13Thanks, Greg. Well, coming up next, it's just been announced that the minimum wage is set to rise.
38:21What are the new rates? Plus a £400 bank switch deal. We'll see you after this.
38:25Kelly, Vogue, Eddie and Tom have spent the night from hell in the jungle nursery.
38:36Find out how they get on and see how many stars Jack can bring home from the latest trial, Drown the Hatch.
38:42Join us for all that when Am A Celebrity continues live from Australia at nine o'clock tonight.
38:48We will see you there.
38:56Welcome back to the show. Social media has been alive tonight. Electric, if you like.
39:01Look at this from Daniel. He's saying,
39:03I've just switched whilst sat watching the show. I've been paying £226 a month direct debit for over the last year on a standard variable.
39:10Pants cap!
39:12Just fixed for 12 months with the same company for £130 a month.
39:15Wow.
39:16£1200 saving over the next year. Also £76 in credit. Wow.
39:21Again, I suspect some of that saving will be their drop to direct debit rather than actual lowering costs,
39:26but there will be a big saving in there. Well done.
39:27That's really good. And just this quick question for you here, Martin, from Carol.
39:30Carol's asking, my energy company keeps saying my meter is out of date. I've had it for 10 years.
39:35Are they just trying to make me get a smart meter?
39:37No and yes. I'm just waggling this because I've got some questions on the computer so it doesn't go off.
39:42Look, meters do date and they do have a use by date beyond which you can't use them.
39:49Now, the thing to do is check, do they have an MID certification?
39:52If they have an MID certification, they should not expire. If they don't, they probably do expire.
39:57There's a brilliant page on the Citizens Advice website that takes you through how you know if your meter expires or not.
40:02That's where I'd probably send you to. If your meter expires, they have to fit a new one.
40:08Almost all firms these days only have smart meters.
40:11So there's no requirement for them to fit a smart meter, but they don't have any others.
40:14If you really hate a smart meter, and I tend to be a bit of a fan, you can see what, you know, you don't have to do the readings anymore.
40:19It's up to date and you can see what you're using, but I know some people don't like them.
40:23Then you can ask them to turn off the smart functionality.
40:26So you get a smart meter, but it only works as a dumb meter if you like.
40:30So Carol, I hope that answers your question. Now, I'm going to ask Greg a question or two that have just come in.
40:35So I don't normally use computers. I'm stealing your job, Jeanette.
40:40Joe got in touch. I would like to know why energy companies can have so many different prices for the same product.
40:46Yeah, that's a great question. What happens in energy is every day the wholesale market is changing and it can change dramatically.
40:53You know, if there's news about an issue in the Gulf, the price of gas will go up loads.
40:57On a sunny day, the price of electricity will plummet.
41:00And so every day we're going to the market, getting the cheapest energy we can.
41:05We'll buy a year in advance for fixes. And then, as you said, like three months afterwards, we set the price cap price.
41:13I can't bring myself, but the but so it's really based on those variable costs.
41:18And it just depends on what's going the day we go to market.
41:21So you're buying it in when somebody gets it, you can price them one.
41:23And if it's more expensive a week later, you'll charge them more. If it's cheaper, you'll charge them less or something.
41:28There is one thing, though, which is, you know, we talked about the more complex tariffs.
41:31They don't have to be complex. There are simple ones, for example, some of the two rate tariffs,
41:35because there's a general pattern that electricity in the UK is expensive around about tea time.
41:39It's super cheap overnight and it's very cheap on sunny days around the middle of the day.
41:44And so if you can use electricity more at the cheap times and avoid the expensive, there are other things you can do.
41:50And that makes it more variable, but you'll get a bargain.
41:53I just need to be careful. Most people, you don't have time of use tariffs, so you'll pay the same all day.
41:57But as a society, if you get people off 4 to 8pm, then we don't have enough redundancy in the system
42:02that would bring all our prices down, which is why time of use tariffs comes in.
42:05But I have to go to my news you can use at this point.
42:08You absolutely do.
42:09OK, totally different subject. Just announced at about 6 o'clock this evening, new minimum wage rates from the 1st of April 2026.
42:18For those aged 21, the main one is going up 50p an hour, which is up about 4.1%.
42:22For those aged 18 to 20, it's going up 85p an hour, which is up about 8.5%,
42:26because they're trying to get that closer to the one for slightly older people.
42:30For those on apprenticeships or under 18s, it's going up 45p an hour, up 6%.
42:35Important to understand, those are not just if you're paid by the hour, they apply to everyone, however you are paid.
42:41So if you were working full time, you know, and it varies on the number of hours you're doing,
42:46this is roughly equivalent to £900 a year more, £1,500 a year more, or £850 a year more.
42:53But this is the thing that people don't know.
42:55There are many people on minimum wage who are actually being underpaid
42:59because their employers are not following the rules.
43:01370,000 people in 2024, the last time we had numbers from, were being underpaid.
43:07And this is not small firms, this includes big household name firms.
43:10Don't think this is only small backstreet employers, it isn't.
43:13Now there are two big reasons this happens.
43:15If you have to buy your uniform, your tools, your safety equipment and your clothing,
43:19the cost of that should not take you below equivalent minimum wage over your pay period.
43:24What does that mean?
43:25So you take the cost, you subtract it over your pay period,
43:28so if you're paid by the month, it's in a month, if you're paid by the week, it's in a week.
43:32If that takes you down below minimum wage for the hours you've worked,
43:35you have been underpaid, then you should get that money.
43:38You should also be paid for all your working time.
43:41Overtime, security checks, handovers, opening up, on call.
43:44And you shouldn't get less than minimum wage once your full working time is taken into account.
43:49Your pay should be at least equal to minimum wage for that period.
43:52Those are the big ones.
43:54A few more tips can't be within the minimum wage, they have to be on top.
43:57If you're on commission and you don't get enough for minimum wage, your employers have to top you up.
44:01Is your apprenticeship real?
44:03There's a special lower minimum wage apprenticeship rate.
44:05They can't have that rate and not do a proper apprenticeship,
44:08so you need structured training as part of your apprenticeship.
44:11If not, you need to be paid the other minimum wage rate,
44:13because you're not really an apprentice.
44:15And, big one for 18 and 21 year olds, you should get a pay rise on your birthday,
44:19because you're now in a different minimum wage bracket if you're on minimum wage,
44:22and on the 1st of April when it moves.
44:24If you think you're underpaid, call ACAS, which is the arbitration service, for free help.
44:30You can complain to your employer, many people won't want to do that,
44:33or you can complain anonymously via gov.uk.
44:35Obviously, if you're a single employee, then they'll know it's you, but for most people that will help.
44:40Yeah. Quickies now, we haven't got time for long.
44:43Mobile, which network's got the strongest signal indoors and out where you live?
44:46I actually really rate the Map Your Mobile tool on ofcom.org.uk.
44:50It's detailed, well worth checking to see where you get the best signal.
44:53By the way, if you think it's wrong, then do feedback to them.
44:55The more people feedback, the more accurate it gets, and there's a little button below.
44:59Ending on Thursday, 400 quid of free cash for switching to Barclays.
45:02It's Barclays Premier. It's only for people who earn over £75,000.
45:06It's only for higher earners. You also get Apple TV.
45:09But it's worth looking at. Biggest cash bonus we've ever seen.
45:12Also, the standard free £200 for everybody else.
45:14You've got to join its blue reward scheme to get the £200.
45:17But as soon as you're paid, you can get rid of the blue reward scheme that costs £5 a month.
45:20And it only normally lasts a month or so.
45:22But there are loads of other free cash deals available at the moment.
45:24It's a great time to be switching bank account.
45:26Have a look back at last week's show on ITVX.
45:28And finally, the unbeatable help to save scheme will be extended to 1.5 million people.
45:33We'll learn this in the budget tomorrow from 2028, they've told me officially.
45:37And it's for those people on Universal Credit who are also working.
45:40You get a 50% boost on up to £50 a month saved over two years via gov.uk.
45:45From 2028, it will also apply to those people who can't work
45:48because they've got parental or kinship responsibilities or they're carers.
45:51You've got a quick case study on that success, haven't you?
45:53We do, very quickly.
45:54Single mum, part-time job from Esther here.
45:56After you covered it two years ago, I took your advice and started to help to save account.
45:59Received a £600 bonus. I can't thank you enough.
46:02Really important. Look at that.
46:03Haven't got time for a clap because, most importantly, Thursday night, where am I?
46:07Thursday night, 7.30, it's my budget special.
46:10The practical change is coming in the budget and Rachel Reeves is coming on the show.
46:14Get in touch with your questions for me or for her about the budget.
46:17We'll be watching it tomorrow. It's a big day.
46:18Thank you to everyone here. Thank you to Greg.
46:207.30, not 8, Thursday night.
46:22Bye-bye. Thanks, Jeanette. Bye-bye.
46:31Well, stay with us here on ITV1.
46:33I'm a celebrity, get me out of here, is on the way next.
46:50Bye-bye.
46:51Bye-bye.
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