We’re not just paying for British Gas directors’ bonuses. It’s £3.5bn to shareholders too.

Last Updated: October 18, 2013By

The BBC radio news yesterday (I was on the road for about five hours, so I heard a LOT of radio news) was full of the fact that Energy Secretary Ed Davey had told disgruntled energy customers to “shop around” after SSE put up its prices last week. Now, the commentators said, former SSE customers who had gone to British Gas had even more reason to be angry at the man who won’t do anything to curb the rapaciousness of this (might as well be) unregulated virtual monopoly. Mr Davey’s response? “Shop around”.

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7 Comments

  1. Joe Smith October 18, 2013 at 10:41 am - Reply

    So, exactly what use is Ed Davey? Like IDS another hot air bag full of excreta. Energy retail prices need legislation to curb increases. But this Government won’t. Why? Because to many of our MPs have vested interest in price increases. From the puppet master Cameron down over NONE of our MPs have the remotest interest in imposing any retail price controls on energy or for that matter fuel. Time to start stoning them.

    • Mike Sivier October 18, 2013 at 10:51 am - Reply

      None of the COALITION MPs. Labour has pledged to freeze prices for 20 months, during which it would seek to re-structure the system to prevent consumers being ripped off by greedy bosses and shareholders.

  2. Stephen Bee October 18, 2013 at 12:29 pm - Reply

    As usual..year in..year out..the energy companies say one of the problems is rising wholesale prices. But I’m sure I read somewhere the energy companies have their own wholesale companies which buy, then mark up before passing on to their retail arms..thereby ensuring double profits from the two sectors. In addition, no-one seems ever to remark on the fact that these rising wholesale prices, conveniently..happen always in September/October each and every year..just in time for the winter fuel usage hikes begin! Talk about rip-off Britain!!!!!

    • Jonathan Wilson October 18, 2013 at 1:24 pm - Reply

      Exactly, and when the prices drop during the summer months the prices are not lowered to reflect that, although they would argue that the overall price has increased consistently…. the fact that profits are doubling over time says that the cartel is working as expected and intended from the outset… other wise why invest in them, although “invest” is such an incorrect term as none of the “investment” is ever put to use in terms of assets or reductions in ongoing costs but is instead a nice little garenteed year on year increasing return on speculation.

      The people who are “investing” are the tax payers, by the back door, who are having to subsidise the capital investments in new power stations and “green” windfarms that subsidise well to do land rich inherited wealth a***holes…. like Mr camorons father; quelle surprise.

      Perhaps there needs to be an established legally binding requirement for the energy companies to do their own investing, with huge penalties if they fail to keep the lights on and the gas supply at a consistent pressure that would eat into most if not all of the profit… don’t do real investing then don’t expect to get a divi next year…

      Also perhaps a method of how much they can put up prices (with extras allowed if the cash is genuinely going to be investing in assets) say something like “RPI – 2%” (A 1% rise give or take, so in line with the benefit uprating, what could be more fair than that?) rising to “RPI + 1%” if the additional, over the 1%, is to be re-invested in say a real power station…. if they don’t like it they can always walk away from the table and their operating licences which would allow the company to be re-nationalised at zero cost which would negate the fact that it would be expensive and a legal minefield (from what I’ve read) to take them back by force (act of parliment), especially as some are state owned by other countries. That last bit always makes me sigh with a wry smile… we privatised our power companies (because private is supposedly “good” sate is “bad”) so they become owned by other state run companies, just not our own… wtaf!

  3. Worried October 18, 2013 at 2:42 pm - Reply

    My own experience as a pensioner:
    Today we had the fuel bill and we were £29.92 in credit (we have a £120pm ~DD with them) but the energy company have put up the DD to £169 per month as they say that will keep us in credit. They have not yet put their prices up and say they do not know if they wil – do they think we are stupid or something? I said to them that if I survived a really harsh winter last year on £120pm and ended up in credit why do they otherwise see the need for such a steep rise? They are supposed to put us on the cheapest tariff according to the govt but after a bit of forcing they said they had one for people over 60 which will save £73 pa – not something they told us up front but we still need to pay £134 pm – this is a rise of over 10% anyway!!

  4. Nigel Simmons October 18, 2013 at 2:54 pm - Reply

    BROKEN BRITISH POLITICS-HEARD IT ALL BEFORE
    Whatever the situation we have heard all the BS before.Edwina Curry as Health Secretary under ‘get back to family values ‘ John Major said “to combat hyperthermia this winter all OAP’s should knit a jumper.People crippled with Arthritis eventually got the hang of using their teeth.
    http://brokenbritishpolitics.simplesite.site

  5. […] Reblogged from Pride's Purge: (not satire – it's the UK today!) Not surprisingly a lot of people are feeling pretty annoyed at yet another massive price hike for domestic consumers by an energy company just before winter.  […]

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