FOUR years ago Labour called for a 20-month price freeze on soaring gas and electricity prices. Critics said it represented a return to the “bad old days” of market manipulation by Labour politicians.

Over the weekend, Theresa May promised to cap the energy bills of households on standard tariffs. She said the plan – likely to be one of the central planks of the forthcoming Tory manifesto – would save consumers around £100 a year.

Politicians are agreed that the current energy supply market offers consumers a bad deal.

Labour MPs must be fizzing at how the Tories have pinched one of their policies, lightly repackaged it and unveiled it to universal approval. One hundred quid off gas and electricity bills is likely to be a vote winner.

Labour also promises a “firm price cap”, to be unveiled in its manifesto, but the party has been blindsided by the Conservatives and now it looks like a Johnny-come-lately.

But will a cap actually make any difference?

All the energy companies will do is quietly withdraw their special deals to compensate for the loss of earnings from capped standard tariffs. People who shop around for the best deals will lose out.

Sadly, a price cap is nothing more than a temporary solution. Meanwhile, Ofgem remains a toothless regulator.

When the big energy suppliers announced crippling price rises earlier this year all Ofgem could do was issue a series of hollow statements. The steep increases were “difficult to justify”, it said. No kidding.

If politicians want to make a real difference they should start by giving the industry regulator real powers. We need a market that works for everyone.