Energy bills

[Count Steer]

I see the idea of an Energy Deficit Fund is being floated. Basically the price cap would be fixed where it is now and instead everyone collectively racks up debt via a common fund. Said fund is then paid off by keeping prices higher for a decade or two.

Does rather assume wholesale prices will come down one day, so that the current cap is "in profit".

However if bills really do hit >£500pcm there would be millions of people who genuinely can't afford it. At that point it doesn't matter what cap you set, people don't have the money so it's moot.

I think it was the genius at Scottish Power that came up with it...the Klarna Fund It also involves the government giving the suppliers a wedge of taxpayers money I believe - to tide them over the period they're selling at a reduced margin/loss. As the young lady once almost said 'He would suggest that wouldn't he?'.

It's Olympic standard 'Kicking the Can Down the Road'.

[Cousin Jack]

Once upona time water/sewerage was effectively free
I recall paying something like £5 per 1/2 year, or thereabouts. It was so insignifiant that I never bothered to budget for it. Today it iz £50 pm.

The point is that prices change, wages change, and habits change. It will be painful during the adjustment, but everything will work out inthe end.

[Count Steer]

Once upona time water/sewerage/rickets/diptheria/polio/TB was effectively free and we all lived in't cardboard box in't middle of t'sewage beds.......
I recall paying something like £5 per 1/2 year, or thereabouts. It was so insignifiant that I never bothered to budget for it. Today it iz £50 pm.

The point is that prices change, wages change, and habits change. It will be painful during the adjustment, but everything will work out inthe end.

LOL. Does the term 'panglossian' ring any bells Jack?

[Cousin Jack]

Yes, I understand the word, but I am also old enough to recall a childhood where central heating was almost unknown (I think I was about 12 before I even went into a house with central heating, and about 20 before I actually lived in one).

Most of the dire warnings currently ringing out about people either freezing or starving to death are just scare-mongering. I survived, my parents, and and grandparents survived. The adjustments needed will be very unwelcome, and uncomfortable, but will be survivable. I hope it isn't necessary to make those sort of adjustments, but I am not worried by them if they do become necessary. Most of the trappings of modern living can be dispensed with, I even lived in one house briefly with no electricity and no running water - long-drop earth closet in the back yard and water from a pump about 50 yards away. It did have gas lighting however. I have no wish to go back to that, It was inconvenient and uncomfortable, but I survived.

[Dodgy69]

Wiwa lad..we had frost on the inside of windows, no CH, justed hugged the coal fire. My memories are, it was bloody freezing, but we survived.

I don't want to give these Robbin bastards any more money than absolutely necessary, we'll be cutting back big time and the mrs says the same.

Shell energy customer.

[Mr. Dazzle]

My house has CH and only CH. If the CH isn't on the house is staying cold, as is the case for most houses these days...saying "we didn't have CH when I was a lad" is overlooking a few things

There's nowhere I could burn the family heirloom furniture and granny's old piano even if I wanted to.

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

We didn't have a house when I were a lad.

[MrLongbeard]

I may have to close my study window, but the CH ain't being run during the day this winter

[Count Steer]

My house has CH and only CH. If the CH isn't on the house is staying cold, as is the case for most houses these days...saying "we didn't have CH when I was a lad" is overlooking a few things

There's nowhere I could burn the family heirloom furniture and granny's old piano even if I wanted to.

You're going to have to remove the insulation and put single glazing in too if you want the full 'when I were a lad' nostalgia trip Young Dazzle. (PS did you know that a dazzle is a collective noun for zebras?).

[Dodgy69]

On a more positive note... global warming may be our friend during the winter months.

[Mr. Dazzle]

(PS did you know that a dazzle is a collective noun for zebras?).

And presumably a collection of WW1 battleships too by similar logic.

[Yorick]

We didn't have a house when I were a lad.

We used to live in t'middle of t'road in a shoe box.

[Mussels]

On a more positive note... global warming may be our friend during the winter months.

This is the best way to reduce people's reliance on fossil fuels and save the planet, the green party seems to have forgotten its aim when it calls for government subsidised fossil fields. Or maybe the planet isn't the green party's primary aim.

[Kneerly Down]

Wiwa lad..we had frost on the inside of windows, no CH

We had 60W lightbulbs though that used nearly 10x as much energy giving off heat as light.

[Count Steer]

On a more positive note... global warming may be our friend during the winter months.

This is the best way to reduce people's reliance on fossil fuels and save the planet.....

If average global winter temperatures rise enough to offset the energy price rise I don't think home heating is going to be top of the list of problems. Water shortage problems will disappear too.

Oh me, oh my...people do make me

[Supermofo]

If we get too cold we can huddle around that Russian gas flare


As Europe's energy costs skyrocket, Russia is burning off large amounts of natural gas, according to analysis shared with BBC News.

They say the plant, near the border with Finland, is burning an estimated $10m (£8.4m) worth of gas every day.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-62652133

[Horse]

If we get too cold we can huddle around that Russian gas flare


As Europe's energy costs skyrocket, Russia is burning off large amounts of natural gas, according to analysis shared with BBC News.

They say the plant, near the border with Finland, is burning an estimated $10m (£8.4m) worth of gas every day.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-62652133

Only when you see and read this can you start to appreciate the scale of it.

This photo was taken by Finnish citizen Ari Laine on 24 July at a distance of around 23 miles (38km) from the Portovaya facility

[Hoonercat]

The cold weather arrived early here last year, mid October. Well, not that cold, but the quick tansition from warm day to colder night made it feel bloody cold. I buy my winter fuel in advance (as do most people here) and you always have to be aware of the 'once every 10 years Siberian winters, so there was no way I was using the heating that early. Bought a big fleece blanket for £17 and saved myself about 6 weeks worth of heating fuel, I could only manage half hour at a time then got too hot. I appreciate that for most people under the age of 40(?) in the UK, that conjures up an image of old codgers trying not to freeze to death, it's something only poor people do etc, but the reality is you're saving yourself a fair bit of dosh, moreso given current prices.
Moving here really made me realise how much we take heating for granted in the UK, having it on tap, so to speak. Having to plan ahead by buying in advance is a great way of learning how to conserve energy as it makes you question if you really need it on. I guess the closest equivalent in the UK is pre-pay metres, again seen as something only the poor use, yet it appears to be the most expensive per unit cost which might put people off.

[Mr. Dazzle]

Always the obsession with heating...

As I mentioned before, heating is actually a relatively small part of my bill. Double so when you consider gas is hugely cheaper than electricity.

Rather than doing the classic old codger of method of "wearing another jumper like we did when I were a lad" I've taken the more sensible route of making my whole house wear a jumper. Modern builds are (can be!) pretty good in at regard.

[Mussels]

The pandemic was great for my heating bill last winter, the first time in many years I remember wearing a jumper inside.