Who is responsible for bills on marital home?

I have decided to leave my husband of 23 years, there has been no real marriage for 17 years. I stayed until my children were adults, so as to do the best for them. They are ok about the separation, but my husband refuses to discuss our break up. He now says if I leave him he expects me to pay 1/2 the bills on the marital home, fortunately we have no mortage.
But I will have to rent a flat and have my own bills to pay. Can he make me pay these bills, friends say it seems his way of making me stay.....Hoping I will eventually fall back in love with him, I have been so un happy for so long, he too deserves to be happy, but I can't give him that. We will have to sell our marital home, I am prepared to wait for my money until then, but I just cannot afford to pay his bils too. He earns much more than I do. Any advice appreciated.

You don't say if you have moved out yet or how long ago you told your husband. His response seems to be something anger driven and you may need to give him more time to come to terms with the situation. In some ways he is trying to bully you into staying and that's never going to work is it.
I would think the best advice now is to let the dust settle if it hasn't been long and then try and move things forward after a few weeks.

HTH
LB

I haven't moved out yet. This topic has been on the back boiler for many years. But it came to a head just before Christmas. He brought it up.
Now he is asking if there is a future for us, I have told him many times NO and he deserves better, he is a nice guy, but I am not in love with him, life is passing me by. Neither of us has anyone else. But I feel now my kids are grown up, it is time if at all possible for me to find happiness, and I hope my hubby will too.
I can't afford to leave if he can make me pay 1/2 the household bills. I can just manage a flat and look after myself on my own wages.
Both of us will be finacially OK when we do sell our house.
I will seek legal advice on this subject.
Yes I think anger is behind a lot of what he says.
Thanks for advice.

My STBX stopped paying for the bills on the MH and because I can scrape enough money to pay them my sol said the court will not give me Maintenance Pending Suit, so if you can prove to the courts otherwise I'm afraid you'll have to pay them, I'm on a part-time wage!

In my situation I left my husband and he stayed in the FMH. We don't have a mortgage and it is my understanding that as he is living there then he should pay the bills and I haven't (a year later) been asked to pay towards them and am in the final stages of dealing with financials.

If you are not living in the house, you are not liable for bills like water/gas/electric/council tax/telephone/television etc etc.

you are responsible for debts up to the time you left and you will be responsible for debts/bills in your name or joint names i.e. outstanding debts/loans etc. But you do NOT have to pay 1/2 of the household bills.

At least this is what I was told, but I'm sure the legal bods will come along soon and confirm this.

K/x

If the utilities are currently in your name you will need to close your account with them, so you will need to pay anything that is currently outstanding. Gas and electric companies will want a meter reading so they can send a final bill. The council tax will calculate up to the date you leave and then work out how much you owe for remainder of the year at the appropriate rate for your new home (less the single persons discount).
If you pay the TV licence get it transferred, let your stbx know that he will need to make his own arrangements from ?? whatever date you choose to move out. It's better to give some notice.