Annual energy bills have been predicted to exceed £5,000 next year, with experts from energy consultancy Auxilione warning the energy price cap could reach around £4,400 by January. Auxilione also predicts that regulator Ofgem could increase the cap further to £5,038 per year in April 2023.

The current energy price cap stands at £1,971 but analysts at Cornwall Insight currently predict a 70 percent hike in October, taking the cap to £3,359 a year. 

READ MORE: Sturgeon unleashes fury at Westminster over bills crisis

Energy regulator Ofgem has said: “The wholesale market continues to move extremely quickly so no forecast for next year is at all robust at this stage and will therefore have very limited value, especially for consumers who must always be the main priority. 

“We cannot stop others from making predictions but we would ask that extreme caution is applied to any predictions for the price cap in January or beyond.”

Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has called for the price cap rise to be scrapped altogether.

She said last week: “We will leave no stone unturned and be prepared to act, whether through legislation or other measures on an emergency basis if that is what is required.

“But things that need to happen are the next energy price rise should be cancelled. 

“There should be serious work with the energy companies to tax windfall profits and to restructure the factors that lead to the cost of energy right now, VAT on fuel should be taken away and there should be a significant increase through increased borrowing if required to get money to those who most need it.”

In a poll that ran from 6pm on Friday, August 12, to 3pm on Thursday, August 18, Express.co.uk asked readers: “Should the energy price cap rise be scrapped as argued by Nicola Sturgeon?” 

Overall, 1,016 people cast their votes with the vast majority, 87 percent (887 people) said “yes” it should be scrapped. 

A further 10 percent (106 people) said “no” it should not, while two percent (23 people) said they did not know. 

Dozens of comments were left below the accompanying article as readers discussed the energy price cap.

Former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called for the Conservative Party to take action and scrap the price cap rise.

In an opinion piece for The Guardian, he wrote: “Time and tide wait for no one. Neither do crises.

“They don’t take holidays and don’t politely hang fire – certainly not to suit the convenience of a departing PM and the whims of two potential successors.”

Ofgem is expected to announce the next price cap on August 26, which will be reviewed every three months. 

In response to previous calls to scrap the price cap, a spokesperson for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said: “Over 22 million households are currently protected by the price cap. 

“If the cap was not in place, energy companies could charge consumers even higher prices, over and above the costs of purchasing wholesale gas and electricity.”