UK energy crisis: Former minister urges UK Government to invest in gas storage and stop relying on 'luck'

He said prices would continue to rise if there was no new strategy for the long-term supply of UK energy, hitting the poorest hardest, and admitted the market could not solve the current emergency.

His remarks came after UK business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said preparations were being made for gas prices to remain high for some time, despite Boris Johnson previously describing the problem as "temporary”.

Mr Kwarteng, who has previously admitted families will face a "difficult winter" with rising energy bills, denied the Conservative administration had “been complacent” as suppliers collapsed.

The Cabinet minister said Ofgem’s concerns had been “interrogated” during the coronavirus pandemic, while the supplier of last resort programme, where consumers are automatically transferred to a new provider if their supplier exits the market, was “found to work”.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said she is “extremely concerned” about the rise in energy prices and its impact on consumers and chaired a meeting of the Scottish Government resilience committee on Thursday to discuss the issues.

The energy price cap is set to rise by £139 a year to £1,277 for a typical gas and electricity customer from October 1, with further record rises expected next year.

Mr Hendry said the collapse of several small energy companies had been “predictable” and that gas storage would have helped “smooth” the global spike in prices.

He also warned investment needed to be made in constructing new interconnectors between Scotland and England to ensure that Scots would not see their energy supply disrupted when renewables are unable to meet demand.

“I have said for many years, going back to when I was a minister, that we don’t have enough gas storage in this country,” he said.