EDF became the fifth big energy company to announce a price hike yesterday. They are increasing prices by 10.8% from 7 December, citing the (disputable) excuses of higher network charges, energy efficiency and social schemes and wholesale energy costs. Folk living in the north of Scotland will pay even more than the rest of the UK.
The company insisted its new standard variable prices would still be lower than those of the other four big suppliers to have announced price rises recently.
E.ON is the only one of the big six energy suppliers that hasn't announced price rises yet this autumn, having pledged to fix prices until the end of 2012.
Last week the energy regulator Ofgem said it would make the market 'simpler, clearer and fairer' for consumers. This promise came days after David Cameron urged the energy giants to overhaul confusing tariff systems.
We hear protests from politicians every year and Ofgem isn't fit for purpose. It has little or no power to dictate to the suppliers.
Let's not forget green taxes make up 20% of household energy bills. The politicians are directly responsible for that as they insisted upon introducing renewable energy policies which they were fully aware would increase prices so much that many hundreds of thousands would fall into the full poverty trap each year.
Pointman has an excellent post this week. He outlines the position of Germany which quickly changed from a mixed energy policy to one using renewables. If we don't realise the UK - and Scotland in particular - is running down the same road, but at a slightly different speed, then we're fools.
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