The Government should consider introducing energy discounts for the least well off following fresh evidence that the UK's poorest households had been hardest by spiraling energy prices.
Julian Morgan, managing director of the price comparison, switching and advice service for energy users, said the least well off urgently needed extra help to cope with their energy bills.
"The economic downturn has hurt all socio-economic groups, but for the poorest in the community it's been an absolute disaster," Mr Morgan said.
"The evidence is clear that the rising cost of energy has impacted low-income households particularly hard, with fuel bills rising more sharply than the cost of necessities like food and other housing costs.
"It's time for the government and OFGEM to consider energy discounts to protect the most needy, otherwise the heat-or-eat dilemma faced by so many households won't go away."
According to a cross-party inquiry into hunger and food poverty, the poorest UK households now spend 40% of their income on housing, food and fuel. This represents an increase of 9 percentage points between 2003 and 2012 - the biggest rise faced by any economic group.
Details of the inquiry, reported in the Observer newspaper, suggested the disproportionately large hit taken by the poor was due entirely to rising housing and fuel costs, as the percentage of income spent on food was the same as a decade ago.
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