The Liberal Democrats have unveiled plans to cut energy bills by £100 a year for the average household in South Devon as part of a wider campaign to tackle the cost of living crisis.

Under the party's proposed "Essential Energy Guarantee", every household would receive a basic energy allowance, equivalent to 50% of average energy consumption at a discounted rate.

The Liberal Democrats say the scheme would help cover essential energy needs such as heating, lighting and powering medical equipment.

According to House of Commons Library data, 11.4% of households in South Devon are classed as fuel poor - meaning they struggle to afford their basic energy needs.

The party estimates the policy would save the average household £100 a year, while the poorest 20% of households would save an average of £140.

Families would receive additional allowances for children, while people with disabilities and those on the lowest incomes would receive the discounted rate on all of their energy use.

Liberal Democrat MP for South Devon Caroline Voaden has backed the proposal, which forms part of a wider package of energy policies.

The Liberal Democrats say the Essential Energy Guarantee would be funded by reclaiming £5 billion in what they describe as unexpected windfall profits made by monopoly energy network operators.

Speaking on LBC, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader and Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper said the party's calculations are based on agreements between energy network operators and Ofgem in 2020.

"Energy operators made a deal with Ofgem that allowed them to pass rising costs onto the customer,” said Ms Cooper. “But these companies already had their borrowing deals secured, and on lower terms, so they did not incur higher borrowing costs and yet were allowed to pass costs onto the customer. We think we can claw back that money, and that comes to £5 billion."

Ms Voaden said: "For too long, consecutive governments have opted for short-term quick fixes over the serious work needed to pull millions out of fuel poverty.

"The Liberal Democrats' plan for an Essential Energy Guarantee is a permanent fix that ensures nobody must choose between heating and eating. I challenge Labour's leadership contenders to back our proposal and finally give families in South Devon the long-term energy security they deserve."

The proposal comes as the Government pursues its own measures to reduce household energy costs. Ministers have said bills will be lowered by ending funding for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) through energy bills and removing 75% of Renewables Obligation costs from consumers' bills.

In February, energy regulator Ofgem confirmed the energy price cap would fall by 7% from April, reducing the amount customers on standard variable tariffs pay for each unit of gas and electricity.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves claims this will save customers an average of £150 annually - although real-time figures forecast the saving is closer to £117 due to rising costs of maintaining and upgrading energy network grids.

Based on typical annual household consumption of around 2,700kWh of electricity and 11,500kWh of gas, the discounted allowance proposed by the Liberal Democrats would apply to approximately 7,100kWh of energy each year.

Based on the party's estimated £100 annual saving, this would equate to a discount of around 1.4p per kWh, or roughly 12%, on that portion of household energy use.