Out of energy
With the announcement by British Gas that they intend to hike electricity prices by 12.5 per cent from September, as a British Gas customer I will be switching suppliers for my gas and electricity immediately.
It is an absolute disgrace at a time in this country where wages are being frozen and working families are being forced to use foodbanks.
However, a company that makes £2.2 billion profit is able to inflict misery on ordinary people in the name of profiteering. I would urge British Gas customers to shop around and try to find the best deal – the amount of people who switch suppliers in the UK is low compared to other countries and the simple reason is the utility industry relies on obfuscation to prevent customers getting the best deals, in the hope that they will give up, confused, feeling that it is not worth the stress.
This is clearly an example of regulation that has failed consumers drastically and a preelection pledge by the Conservatives to introduce a cap was watered down to apply to vulnerable customers only. I am in full agreement that the “Big 6” energy companies need to be nationalised. GORDON KENNEDY Simpson Square
Perth John Cameron and Malcolm Parkin’s letters of 1 August rightly underscore the growing realisations that we are gravely threatened economically, industrially and domestically by declines in energy availability, mainly because of failed government policies, nowhere more evident than here, in Scotland.
The main mis-guidance of those in charge results from almost certainly unwarranted fears, of promoting adverse climate changes, of risking nuclear mishaps and of dangerous impacts from “fracking”. The result is real fears of failure of western civilisation, within our lifetimes, from worsening energy lack.
Meanwhile as, for example, the Germans, Indians and Chinese recognise, a renaissance of the traditional fossil fuel and nuclear-based electricity generation is vitally needed.
In our Scottish case, the abandonment of wind- and seawater-based electricity generation methods is more than justified, as is closely regulated fracking, which is so successful in North America. Meanwhile, the efforts to develop better means of power production and sparing waste need more investment, not based only on politicians’ opinions, but on specialist engineers’ informed, sound advice.
Loss of face may be unwelcome to those in charge politically, but would not be nearly so bad as the impacts of power supplies progressively more inadequate for our needs. (DR) CHARLES WARDROP Viewlands Road West, Perth