Instead of spending money on support programmes, Mr Jackson urged the Government to “stop the waste” and cut the energy costs paid by households.
He said: “Before you talk about bailouts, you should be talking about how you slash the cost of energy.
“We should be urgently reassessing spending plans for grid and networks and saying ‘We’re going to slash that by £50bn, £70bn, because we can run the electricity system without it’.
“If we use times like now to say ‘Let’s cut the underlying cost of our energy’, then there’s far less pressure for things like bailouts. Let’s first of all have the most efficient electricity system possible before we think about those other measures.”
As part of Britain’s plan to reach net zero carbon emissions, the Government has approved a vast construction programme to expand the network of cables and wires that carry electricity around the country.
The work will increase the system’s capacity to carry power from new wind and solar farms.
Disagreements over energy demand
Official forecasts also suggest that it will be needed because of the rise in demand that comes from greater adoption of electrified transport and heating.
According to the estimates, power demand will be 50pc higher by 2035, and 100pc higher by 2050.
However, Mr Jackson said the forecasts made flawed assumptions about the amount of power that will be needed at “peak” times such as the mornings and evenings.
Data from Octopus show that although a typical household with an electric car saw their power consumption rise by 60pc, their peak-time consumption only increased by 4pc.
By comparison, the official forecasts assume a 70pc increase in peak-time demand, Mr Jackson said.
This is significant because energy suppliers have warned that charges to pay for network upgrades are set to be the biggest factor driving household bills higher between now and 2030.
The typical household paid about £166 per year in network charges last year, according to the Electricitybills.uk tracker website. By 2030, that is expected to rise to £251.
Other energy company bosses, including Simone Rossi, the boss of EDF, have also questioned the Government’s assumptions that electricity demand is set to shoot up, arguing that it has actually fallen in the past two decades.
Mr Jackson also rejected claims that Octopus had a cosy relationship with Labour.
Dale Vince, a green energy industrialist, pointed to Mr Jackson’s advisory roles in the Government and asked on Friday: “Anything we need to know?”
Mr Jackson said his advice was often ignored by ministers, pointing to recent decisions to abandon plans for regional electricity pricing and to block the Chinese wind turbine manufacturer. His company disagreed with the Government on both occasions.
