There's no fool like an old fool...

Trying to keep up with topical events like froggy did, before he went into hibernation that is, is not really easy for me. Fortunately, this week has proven to be different, because since we are in the grip of winter once again, those greedy energy suppliers are once again beginning to take us for a ride.

Not only are they trying to bump up their profits by raising their prices, charging more according to your postcode, there's nothing new here I suppose, but they also want us to pay for all of this new pipe replacement they've been doing around the country. It's odd, but in most businesses I know of, the cost of investment is usually born from a company's profits. Not so with the energy suppliers. They don't want their investors to lose out on what needs to be done, not only from a safety factor, but to modernize the system as well. It's a bit like our railways, they take big subsidies from our taxes, then put up fares by more than the cost of inflation, just so that their investors are not seen to be out of pocket.

Anyhow, I was talking about these greedy energy suppliers. One thing at a time, please! According to a sector of the media, the wholesale price of gas was 30p per therm about a year ago. Of course, not long after this, the gas providers had a glut and virtually couldn't give the stuff away for free. Anyway, I digress. The price per therm today now stands at 50p, which means that it has increased by 60% right? Well, don't forget that when the original round of increases were implemented just over a year ago, pre-glut era, consumer prices for gas went up by on average, 90% as wholesale prices went to a high of 75p per therm. For some time, these greedy gas suppliers not only enjoyed profiteering on these increases, but when the bottom almost fell out of the gas supplies (the glut), our energy suppliers gave most of us a generous (read: tight-fisted) discount of about 20% and still made huge profits from us.

Now, it doesn't take a mathematical genius to work out that for the past year or so, energy suppliers have been raking in their profits at our expense. Just because the wholesale price has risen to 50p per therm, it still remains far cheaper and therefore profitable to the supplier, at this price than at 75p. So, why is it that the energy suppliers need to put prices up by another 15%, when in fact wholesale prices are still quite cheap?

I'll tell you why... It's because it's bloody cold and we need their gas. They take us for fools! Not only this, but where is our champion, OFGEM, when you need it? Yes, it's true that they are going to be having talks with our government and these suppliers, but who wants to bet that the outcome won't be to our benefit? They'll do their usual bout of scheming, trying to work out how they can rip us off by as much as they dare, enough so that the energy suppliers can once again get away with cheating on us.

On to another distasteful subject now, Direct Debit. You've probably all had it thrust upon you at some time or other, and I expect that few of you actually like paying your bills in this manner. What I don't like about Direct Debit, it's the way that companies threaten us with penalties should we decide not to settle our bills by DD. You know, not everyone has money laying idle in their bank accounts, if indeed you even have one, at any given time, just so a bill can be paid precisely when these companies demand it. Lots of you get paid monthly, but can you honestly say that a bill arrives after you are paid? I doubt that it does. They always have the knack of turning up before you get paid and the money isn't there. Of course, this will incur the wrath of your bank, who will then quite cheerfully charge you for not having enough funds to settle the DD when it was supposed to. Like it or not, Direct Debit is fast becoming an ugly canker upon our society.

In years past, most people settled their bills regularly, even if it was a bit of a struggle and not paid precisely on time, but they none-the-less did get paid. If you've ever been in business, or are in one at present, you'll know that it's frequently these larger companies who take the longest amount of time to settle up with you. 30, 60 or even 90 days is the norm taken by these companies to settle their bills. Let me tell you, you cannot go to them and demand that they pay their bills by DD, like they expect you to. Let's face it, do they honestly give you any real discount for paying this way? Oh, come on! Surely you don't really think that they do? In our society, what is given with one hand, is greedily taken away with the other. And this is an absolute fact...

Time for me to get back to my gardening, so, mind how you go now...


Bob (Standing in for Froggy)