Nothing sums up Britain’s traditional commitment to common sense like John Maynard Keynes’s maxim: “When the facts change, I change my mind.”

Here’s a fact: The cost of energy is going up and millions of Britons are about to pay more, but Labour is refusing to green-light a new chapter of oil and gas exploration in the North Sea.

Annual household energy prices will jump by 13% in July, with customers using typical amounts of gas and electricity expected to pay £1,862.

When the cost of living is one of the biggest worries in the country, yet another hike in bills will pull even tighter than the knot in the stomach of many Britons.

The war in Iran has fuelled the price rise and Tehran has learned how easily it can sow international chaos by disrupting shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, there is the frightening possibility that Russia in wartime could disrupt deliveries of liquified natural gas (LNG) to the UK.

One of the primary tasks of a Government is keeping the nation’s lights on and ensuring citizens do not freeze in winter. Just days ago, Enrique Cornejo of Offshore Energies UK warned in the Express that “we have less than two weeks worth of stored gas supply”.

Britain already faces a cost of energy crisis. How can UK industries hope to compete with international rivals when it is so much more expensive to power a business than in many comparable countries?

The UK had the highest industrial electricity prices of any member of the International Energy Agency in 2024. When it came to domestic use, after taxes were taken into account, we were second to Germany.

Energy is the lifeblood of industry. Whether powering a steel plant or an AI data centre, Britain needs abundant and affordable energy.

At present, it is not affordable. And the fear is that the type of conflict which not so long ago seemed inconceivable could trigger an existential crisis.

Sir Tony Blair has jumped into the fray, urging Labour ministers to “remove those parts of the net zero agenda which prioritise clean energy over cheaper energy”.

Sir Keir Starmer lacks the clout to take on Ed Miliband, the Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary. This month’s King’s Speech made it clear that a Government famous for ditching unpopular policies will not shift when it comes to the ban on tapping into new fields in North Sea.

The speech declared the Government would “show climate leadership by meeting the manifesto commitment not to issue new licences to explore new fields, including delivering the commitment to ban fracking”.

Britons sweltering through the heatwave need little convincing that climate change is real. And a country which unleashed the industrial revolution on the world will surely embrace the challenge of harnessing natural resources to provide plentiful, cheap energy for future generations.

But citizens will ask whether daunting and immediate economic and security challenges mean a new flexibility is needed. Should we maximise North Sea extraction while we still have the skilled workers and industry to perform this epic task? At the very least, should we ramp up our gas storage reserves?

The Conservatives and Reform UK argue the Government’s current position is idiotic. If Labour is blamed for squandering the chance to exploit home-grown energy when higher bills land on doorsteps, then whoever is in Number 10 by that time will even greater pressure to change course.

There is plenty of Westminster speculation that Mr Miliband, one of the mightiest power brokers at the cabinet table, could become Chancellor. When it is his job to ignite true growth, will he look at the energy policy he has championed in Government and decide the facts have changed?

If the public believe Labour is a threat to their family finances as well as a national security, then this party will be out of power.