A colleague of the great man trotted off dutifully to Monday afternoon's’s session of the Lords Select Committee which keeps an eye on European Union issues like competition and the single market.
Centrica, National Grid and Gaz de France were due to give oral evidence. But for a moment it looked like the Frenchies (a.k.a the three-person delegation from GdF) weren’t going to make the session.
Disconnector has more than once seen advice to workers to reduce air conditioning requirements (and save money) in a hot summer by taking off their ties - advice first given (unles you know better) to Japanese salarymen.
Does it really work? At last we can put some numbers to the rumours, thanks to those style conscious Italians. "Taking off the tie produces an immediate decrease in the body temperature by 2C or 3C", Italian officials told the Guardian.
UK readers can now pray for a much-needed heatwave, secure in the knowledge they can look as cool as their continental cousins.
Disconnector has no tie to take off. But have no fear; his high tech outfit is, of course, warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
A colleague attended last night's launch of the report into the first year of the Energy Supply Ombudsman at the impressive Portcullis House opposite the Houses of Parliament. Although enquiries to the energy onbudsman are running ahead of those directed to the equivalent telecoms scheme at the same stage of its development, energy retailers were rightly pleased that only 630 formal complaints had been received by the ombudsman in the first year.
A rather jaundiced great man was hoping for a quieter summer on the energy consultation front. Over the past few years, the government and Ofgem have been putting out documents on a near-continuous basis, leading to overheated printers and post persons at serious risk of injury.
So it was with a heavy heart that Disconnector learnt last Monday that “the government’s discussion with the public about the country’s future energy needs moved up a gear today with the start of an extensive programme of nationwide consultative events”.
Thanks to a newly minted press release from Chris (sorry, DBERR: the Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform) he has learnt that a series of 12 regional stakeholder events “are being held over the summer to capture the views of green groups, energy companies, businesses, consumer groups, unions, faith groups and academics”.
Disconnector is a tad concerned about those choices. Why, he wants to know, aren’t Hell’s Angel chapters being consulted. Or the UK branch of the Klingons. And what do Scientologists make of it all?
Disconnector is deeply worried that this latest consultative exercise is fatally flawed and will mean a return match in court for the government’s laboured attempt to go nuclear.
Listening to BBC Radio 5 late last night, Disconnector was intrigued to catch a debate between Uswitch energy consumer policy director Ann Robinson and Utility Week editor Steve Hobson on energy billing.
It appears Uswitch has come up with some new research saying a third of customers regularly receive estimated bills, and inaccurate estimates can push some vulnerable customers into debt. In our experience, most customers complain than estimated bills leave them owed money at the end of the year but leaving that aside the argument that bad billing causes debt is getting rather tired.
Anyone with a dull minute to pass could do worse than have a giggle at ScottishPower's endearing cartoon family of household appliances http://www.scottishpower.co.uk/About_Us/Meet_the_Appliances/
There is Kirk the Kettle for example who
easily gets frustrated with things and has to let off steam now and again. But once the other appliances calm him down, Kirk is in his element.
ignored, sitting lonely in a dusty corner.
Congratulations to the Power Trading Forum for moving the venue of its annual dinner from London's Guildhall to Manion House at a few hours notice - after EDF Energy cut through the underground cables supplying power to the Guildhall. With 350 guests due to sit down to dinner at 7.30pm, the Forum was forced to make the decision to switch locations at 3pm when it became clear power could not be restored. As luck would have it, Mansion House was available and a magnificent effort by the organisers saw the whole event successfully relocated from the fantastic Guildhall to only slightly less sumptious surroundings of the London Mayor's residence. Well done to all concerned.
Congratulations to the Power Trading Forum for moving the venue of its annual dinner from London's Guildhall to Manion House at a few hours notice - after EDF Energy cut through the underground cables supplying power to the Guildhall. With 350 guests due to sit down to dinner at 7.30pm, the Forum was forced to make the decision to switch locations at 3pm when it became clear power could not be restored. As luck would have it, Mansion House was available and a magnificent effort by the organisers saw the whole event successfully relocated from the fantastic Guildhall to only slightly less sumptious surroundings of the London Mayor's residence. Well done to all concerned.
Poor old British Gas received yet another - and entirely predictable - kicking in the mass media today after making profits of, gasp, £571 million last year, while four million fuel poor struugle to pay their energy bills.
Why can't the BBC and the newspapers grasp the concept that Britain's energy retailers are now private companies with responsibilities to shareholders and employees as well as customers? Why do energy companies meet with such disapproval for making profits? It's not like Centrica is churning out the sort of monopoly money made by other comapnies - BP's £8.7 billion, Tesco's £2.5 billion or Barclays' £7.1 billion spring to mind.
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