A Reading mother said she will be forced to either "heat or eat" if energy prices rise by 50 per cent, as projected by trade body Energy UK.

Lisa Clements, 43, from Reading, already wraps herself in a duvet so she can afford to turn on the heating when her 10-year-old son returns home from school.

The low temperatures in Ms Clements home aggravate a permanent back injury she sustained to the point where she struggles to walk.

A new, higher price cap is set to come into force in April, which could result in low-income families like Ms Clements’ spending 18 per cent of their income on energy bills after housing costs, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

“That will be horrendous. That is literally going to be either heat or eat,” said Ms Clements.

“I’m spending more on gas and electricity than what I’m spending on food. So I am worried.”

She added: “I am struggling.”

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Ms Clements said the amount she pays for gas and electric per week has risen from £25 to £50 in the last six months, despite her rarely using heating even in the winter.

“It’s gas and electric before anything else so I know my son has his basic needs but if he needed school uniform or school shoes or a new coat I would have to think 'where am I going to get that money from?'”

She described the stress of watching the number on her smart heating app tick upwards.

“It’s like flying money out of the window,” she said.

“I don’t understand why the government hasn’t stepped in to help people. While they’re having parties or they’ve got their second homes or they’re flying off on holidays, there’s people out their struggling.

“Obviously there’s going to be people who are worse off than me with disabilities and things like that. I’m not going to be the only one.”

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A Government spokesperson said: “We recognise people are facing pressures with the cost of living, which is why we are taking action worth more than £4.2bn and supporting vulnerable households through initiatives such as the £500m Household Support Fund and Warm Home Discount.

“The Energy Price Cap is currently insulating millions of consumers from high global gas prices. We’ll continue to listen to consumers and businesses on how to manage the costs of energy.”

The Warm Home Discount offers some low-income households £140 for a year’s energy bills.

Mrs Clements said: “£140 will help a hell of a lot of people out, but for a year that’s not going to last long is it? I think the government do need to step up and stop this.”

Customers are currently protected from the soaring international gas price by the cap on energy bills, which limits costs to £1,277 for an average household.

The new cap is yet to be decided and will be announced on February 7, but analysts have predicted a jump to nearly £2,000.