EDF now put prices up!
Discussion
Is it me or were we not much better off when power companies were nationalised! Ideologically I get privatisation but for something as crucial as energy supplies it just does not work....we are being ripped off, we are at the mercy of International markets and suppliers and there is a stand off when it comes to the massive investment needed for new power stations between the companies and the government that may lead to black outs before the government inevitably buckle and step in....after all...why do private companies care if someone has no power..they have no duty or moral obligation to make sure everyone in the land has power.
Edited by Lotusevoraboy on Friday 26th October 22:33
Lotusevoraboy said:
Is it me or were we not much better off when power companies were nationalised! Ideologically I get privatisation but for something as crucial as energy supplies it just does not work....we are being ripped off, we are at the mercy of International markets and suppliers and there is a stand off when it comes to the massive investment needed for new power stations between the companies and the government that may lead to black outs before the government inevitably buckle and step in....after all...why do private companies care if someone has no power..they have no duty or moral obligation to make sure everyone in the land has power.
You feel that way because you are missing a vital piece of information. When the torys privatised the utilities they retained things called 'Golden Shares' which effectively gave them some control over the privatised companies in terms of limiting the amount prices could rise by each year, the amount of profit re-invested and so on. This worked reasonably well until a certain recent government with a penchant for spending and a very unpopular leader decided to sell them off, primarily to the French to help fund the profligacy of his government and in the process swapped the UK consumers rights for a handful of beans. Hence the power companies love the UK market because they can do whatever they like, compared to say, France where the government won't let them. . . . . . .Edited by Lotusevoraboy on Friday 26th October 22:33
Green agenda? Really?
We're a net importer of gas competing for supply with the rest of the continent and we're heading into winter; all these cause the price to go up. Tough st, that's a free market.
We pay the bare minimum of tax on energy supplies imposed by the EU, so that's not it either.
We're a net importer of gas competing for supply with the rest of the continent and we're heading into winter; all these cause the price to go up. Tough st, that's a free market.
We pay the bare minimum of tax on energy supplies imposed by the EU, so that's not it either.
Caulkhead said:
Lotusevoraboy said:
Is it me or were we not much better off when power companies were nationalised! Ideologically I get privatisation but for something as crucial as energy supplies it just does not work....we are being ripped off, we are at the mercy of International markets and suppliers and there is a stand off when it comes to the massive investment needed for new power stations between the companies and the government that may lead to black outs before the government inevitably buckle and step in....after all...why do private companies care if someone has no power..they have no duty or moral obligation to make sure everyone in the land has power.
You feel that way because you are missing a vital piece of information. When the torys privatised the utilities they retained things called 'Golden Shares' which effectively gave them some control over the privatised companies in terms of limiting the amount prices could rise by each year, the amount of profit re-invested and so on. This worked reasonably well until a certain recent government with a penchant for spending and a very unpopular leader decided to sell them off, primarily to the French to help fund the profligacy of his government and in the process swapped the UK consumers rights for a handful of beans. Hence the power companies love the UK market because they can do whatever they like, compared to Edited by Lotusevoraboy on Friday 26th October 22:33
say, France where the government won't let them. . . . . . .
Lotusevoraboy said:
How hard would it be for the government to say sod you and renationalise, or for the government to set up it's own company, subsidised, or making use of compulsorily purchased national resources like coal, to undercut the cartel and force them to drive prices down in order to compete?
Ozzie Osmond said:
Lotusevoraboy said:
How hard would it be for the government to say sod you and renationalise....
Why not bring Arthur Scargill back from the wilderness to head it up?martin84 said:
Why the fk are good honest hard-working British people buying French fking electricity?
Same reason they buy German cars and Korean smartphones? Why would anyone feel patriotic about electrons? I note you used to own a Peugeot 406. French fking cars...Edited by hornet on Saturday 27th October 02:32
hornet said:
Same reason they buy German cars and Korean smartphones? Why would anyone feel patriotic about electrons? I note you used to own a Peugeot 406. French fking cars...
But haven't we actually got reactors on land here in G.B? It's not a case of electrons but more where does the electricity produced in the U.K go? Or do we not produce enough?Edited by hornet on Saturday 27th October 02:32
Just had a look here
http://www.energy.eu/#Domestic-Elec
The UK is far from the most expensive - in fact one of the cheaper ones. About the same price as France.
http://www.energy.eu/#Domestic-Elec
The UK is far from the most expensive - in fact one of the cheaper ones. About the same price as France.
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