Act now on energy bills subsidy or see fuel poverty surge, says Martin Lewis

Jeremy Hunt urged to reconsider raising state-subsidised energy rate from April as market prices make delay affordable

Jeremy Hunt must act now to reverse plans to raise energy bills from April, MoneySavingExpert's Martin Lewis has warned, saying the change cannot wait until the spring budget next month.

In a letter to the chancellor seen by the Guardian, Lewis warned more than 1.7m more households could be plunged into fuel poverty if he does not urgently commit to freezing energy prices.