BRITISH gas prices soared by more than 20 per cent to a three-year high this morning after attacks on energy sites in Iran and Qatar.

Campaigners branded the spike in prices the “Trump Tax on Energy” as a Shell plant was damaged amid the US president’s threats to “massively blow up” a key Iran gas field.

Gas and oil prices were up sharply overnight after Qatar said today that Iranian missile attacks had hit its liquefied natural gas (LNG) field Ras Laffan, “causing sizeable fires and extensive further damage.”

British energy giant Shell said the attack caused damage to a facility that is important to the firm.

The attack in Qatar followed reports that Israel launched an attack against Iran’s South Pars gas field.

Mr Trump said he “knew nothing” of Israel’s strike and that he did not want to authorise “this level of violence and destruction.”

But he also pledged to “massively blow up the entirety” of Iran’s South Pars gas field if the nation attacks Qatar’s facilities again.

End Fuel Poverty Coalition co-ordinator Simon Francis said: “These gas and oil prices haven’t been seen since the winter of 2022/23 when an Energy Price Guarantee was needed to protect households from the worst excesses of our exposure to global markets. 

“The reality is that households will face a ‘Trump Tax’ on their energy bills as a result of this war and the case for government action to support households is becoming impossible to ignore. 

“We have written to ministers with proposals to ensure support reaches the households most exposed to high energy costs first, while giving the government the ability to scale up help quickly if the crisis continues.”

More than 50 fuel poverty organisations including the Coalition, Greenpeace and National Pensioners Convention wrote to Energy Secretary Ed Miliband and the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets CEO Jonathan Brearley for cheap renewables to cut bills today.

Warning energy bills are at risk of increasing by £250 in July due to the ongoing war in the Middle East, their proposals included a guaranteeing that every household has access to affordable renewable electricity for basic needs such as heating, lighting, cooking and washing.

A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said: “Tackling the affordability crisis is the Government’s number one priority. That is why we are acting to bring bills down now and for the long term.

“Action we took at the Budget ensured the price cap will fall by £117 from April, which will remain in place until end of June.

“We have also expanded the £150 Warm Home Discount to around six million households and committed over £50 million to help households pay for the rising cost of heating oil.”