The truth about green taxes in energy bills

SIR – Professor Dieter Helm’s comprehensive report on the state of the UK energy market (report, October 27) states that all electricity bills should show green taxes separately.

Some suppliers do this now for medium to large businesses, and it is easy to see that most are already paying 30 per cent of their charges as direct green taxes. What is more worrying is that these taxes are set to double in the next six years – several years before Hinkley Point produces its highly subsidised electricity.

The supplier’s margin is often less than 1 per cent, so there is little scope for savings to be achieved there.

It will be interesting to hear the comments of the governments, past and present, that have caused this situation and how they will respond to the report, if they do. Chris Lewis

Widnes, Cheshire

SIR – The Government recently reaffirmed its faith in free markets to provide the best opportunities for economic growth. Why, then, did it negotiate the disastrous contract for the Hinkley Point C power station, rather than encourage British-made small modular reactors?

Why is it also proposing a cap on energy prices when there are now many more players in the energy market beyond the “Big Six”? Rodney Chadburn

Tattingstone, Suffolk

SIR – Demolishing all our cooling towers and coal-burning power stations was bad planning: these sites would have had great potential for small modular reactors.

The reactors could have replaced the coal furnaces to generate the high-pressure steam required for the turbines and power generators. The power could then have flowed through to the existing grid connector infrastructure. Michael Marks

Llandrindod Wells, Radnorshire