Tuesday 17 May 2022 12:52 AM DAILY MAIL COMMENT: Sold down the river by weak watchdog trends now
Energy watchdog Ofgem is supposed to defend consumers’ interests against predatory exploitation by the gas and electricity giants.
Too often, though, the regulator supinely bends the knee to an industry accused of obscene profiteering.
Yesterday, it did so again.
At first glance, its plan to review the price cap every three months, not six, makes some sense.
Falls in energy prices could be passed on quicker – a huge help to families struggling with the cost of living crunch.
But the grim flipside is that this risks leaving customers dangerously vulnerable to unaffordable mid-winter bill hikes.
Energy watchdog Ofgem's plans could help and hinder families who are struggling to pay their energy bills
On top of that, Ofgem’s proposals would discourage competition to offer cheaper tariffs – a blow to the consumer, but a lucrative godsend to the energy firms.
And if the watchdog really wanted to slash bills, wouldn’t it cut costly standing charges, including punishing green levies?
This is a capitulation by a weak regulator that has been asleep at the wheel when it was meant to be overseeing a dysfunctional but rapacious industry.
It insists it is standing up for us.
But its appeasement of the power giants is selling us down the river.
WFH? Snap out of it
With the days getting warmer and the nights lighter, the lure of working from home is easy to understand.
More time spent with loved ones or in the garden, less on the ghastly commute.
But with Britain on the brink of an economic downturn, the country must pull together to get through the storms ahead.
With
