German households are soon set to feel the same pain as European counterparts when it comes to energy prices.

Europe's largest economy announced on Monday a winter gas surcharge which will come into effect in October. So far, consumers have managed to avoid a lot of the fallout from Europe's energy crisis.

The levy was set at 2.4 cents per kilowatt and will aim to cover about 90 percent of the higher costs incurred by gas providers caused largely due to Russia's attack on Ukraine.

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But it's not just Germany bearing the brunt of the energy crisis. In the UK the government has taken steps to support households under pressure from the cost of living crisis with measures worth some $45 billion.

They include about $480 off energy bills and a further $786 off for lower-income families, funded in part by a windfall tax on oil and gas companies.

But critics say that quite simply not enough is being done. One of the key critical voice is the leader of the opposition Labour party Keir Starmer.

On Monday he announced Labour's plan would freeze the energy price cap at the current level of $2,380 a year, which he said would help reduce inflation and extend tax on energy providers.

It's a similar story around Europe. In Italy the government has put in place a $14 billion fuel subsidy and investment plan to help struggling consumers.

Lower-income earners will also receive a $200 annual bonus and Italy says it's going to tax companies profiting from higher energy prices.

In Spain the government is similarly taxing energy companies and using the $7 billion revenue to help its citizens. Authorities have also cut value added tax on energy bills from 21 percent to 10 percent.

France has gone in even harder on the energy providers and forced state owned EDF to limit price rises to 4 percent for a year. However, while the government will spend around $22 billion helping its citizens, that translates into one-off payments to consumers of about $100.

European countries may have differing approaches, but with no end in sight to the energy crisis, we can likely expect more measures to come.