Two charities have announced that they will be taking the Government to court due to them not doing all that they can to tackle high energy bills.

The case will be based on an act that was passed eight years ago which said the Government would have to take measures to ensure that fuel poverty had come to an end by 2016 and by 2010 for vulnerable groups.

The two charities, Help the Aged and Friends of the Earth want a high court judicial review as they hope that a judge will order the Government to stick to their commitments, thereby cementing the act even more.

It is estimated that there are currently five million homes in the UK that are in fuel poverty. This is defined by them spending 10 per cent or more of their salaries on their utilities.

The legal action taken by the two charities comes after energy regulator Ofgem decided to publish the findings of an investigation they held into gas and electricity prices.

A BBC correspondent has said that it is very likely, and even widely accepted that the Government will not meet their targets on cutting the cost of gas and electricity prices.

The claim made by Help the Aged and Friends of the Earth is that the Government is breaking the law and not adhering to the act by not doing everything possible and reasonable in order to ease the fuel poverty problem.

The charities’ defence lawyer has claimed that the Government has downgraded the issue of fuel poverty within the list of their objectives. However, in written statements to the court, lawyers working on behalf of the Government insisted that cutting the cost of gas and electricity prices was a priority.