Huge Shock !! British Gas to raise Energy prices

British Gas have just increased their prices for gas and electricity. You will search long and hard on their website to find the details - rather coyly under FAQ's "Why are prices going up" they reply

As you may have seen in the news recently, world oil and gas prices have been reaching record highs - this is an issue facing all energy suppliers. This means the cost of energy we buy for you has been going up and will probably continue to rise. In fact, in the last six months wholesale energy prices have increased by more than 60%. Unfortunately, as a result of this, we have to increase our prices.

So, for a home with average usage, electricity prices have risen on average by 9% and gas on average by 35%. We understand that these rising prices come at a very difficult time for everyone and we're sorry we haven't been able to delay these rises any longer.

Emma Thelwell, at the Daily Telegraph , no doubt with a handy embargoed Press release to rely on, gives it to you from the (cold) shoulder .."British Gas bills to rise by up to 35pc"

Those 10m customers who just take gas from the company will see their bills rocket 35pc, while the 6m paying for electricity will be hit with a 9pc increase. Of its total 16m customers, the 5m who take dual fuel will see bills rise by 25pc.

Emma also has this handy little graphic to help explain where all your money goes -
Be of good cheer thou worthy and honest consumer - OFGEM meeting with Chancellor January 18th 2008 - MARKET IS SOUND – OFGEM ASSURES CHANCELLOR "In their meeting today (Tuesday) with the Chancellor, Alistair Darling, Ofgem Chairman Sir John Mogg and Chief Executive Alistair Buchanan confirmed that Britain’s competitive marketin energy is working". So the sudden rush of price rises by all the major suppliers inadvance of the September review from OFGEM is mere synchronicity.... as Loudon Wainwright III has expressed neatly in a song ..

Little did I know, though I probably should have guessed
By the way you walked and talked and spoke and smoked an dressed
You actually seemed to like me and so naturally I presumed
You were after that thing, it’s the one thing, it’s assumed

So I wined and dined you, hey, I love that kind of stuff
And we blabbed about our backgrounds, how family life is rough
We spoke of what we dreamed of, what we thought of, what we did
Midway through the second bottle I admitted I had kids

But nothing seemed to throw you though I know you better now
At the time my minor crime was figuring out how
To get you in my hotel room unclothed and in my bed
And proceed with the unspeakable, it’s better left unsaid

We went to see a friend of yours and watch me on TV
Sheer coincidence you said, synchronicity
A full moon on a Friday night, the thirteenth of July
A man and two women in a room and on the screen the guy

Your friend, she liked me on the show, yeah she was snowed for sure
Her body language got obscene, her demeanor less than pure
You started venting something wearing spleen upon your sleeve
You got sort of nervous, kind of anxious, had to leave

You told me on the freeway that you didn’t sleep with men
I put two and two together…and I asked about your friend
It turns out she and though she loved my show
She too preferred the fairer sex—I absorbed the blow

It turns out that you did like men but didn’t like their things
That hang down and all the hang-ups being with them always brings
My brother is so practical; this is what he said:
“You should have asked if it was cool to watch them both in bed”

British Airways / Virgin price fixing - not out of the woods yet

Jeff Randall in today's Daily Telegraph has a typically entertaining view on the corporate shenanigans at British Airways, which resulted in a couple of corporates being thrown off the sleigh this week. He points out that the airlines' fuel surcharges – which are at the heart of US and UK regulators' concerns – had begun to be imposed (almost simultaneously) by BA and Virgin Atlantic in May 2004, long before the sainted Sir Rod Eddington left the business.

"Burns looks like the fall guy." says Mr Randall, "Even if Burns did make a compromising call to Virgin, a tape of which is rumoured to be at the centre of civil and criminal investigations, does anyone really believe that a £75,000-a-year PR man, who spent much of his time organising press jolly-ups, masterminded an alleged multi-million-dollar price-fixing campaign on his own initiative?"

" ...let's not forget that if BA was involved in a conspiracy, it could not conspire on its own."

Three other airlines – American, United and Virgin Atlantic – are being investigated for possible misdemeanours in the passenger market, and no fewer than 15 carriers have been named by the inquiry into the cargo market."

Perhaps whilst all this rather unfortunate washing of linen carries on, might it not be a good time for Mr O'Leary, against whom there is not the slightest whiff of attempting to rig prices or fare structures to get approval for his audacious raid on Aer Lingus ? On April 19th this year Ryanair has reiterated its commitment to low fares by guaranteeing not to introduce fuel surcharges .

Michael O'Leary, accused BA of "gouging passengers" by passing on the cost, pointing out that the latest increase was the 7th fuel surcharge the airline had introduced.

The cocky little Irishman pointed out that the £35 surcharge for a one-way trip is more than Ryanair's average total fare of £28, he added.

"Yet again British Airways go for the soft option," said Ryan at the time. "Over the past two years as oil prices have doubled from $35 to $70 a barrel, British Airways' fuel surcharges have increased fourteen-fold from £2.50 per sector to £35 per sector."

Price fixing is not a victimless crime, nor does it go unpunished - Alfred Taubman, the owner of Sotheby's set up up a cartel with rival auction house, Christie's. He was fined $7m in 2002 and jailed for a year.

After the extradition to the US of the spotless Nat West 3 there might be a few sweaty palms in the airline boardrooms.

CURIOUS COUNCIDENCE ?

On Tuesday British Airways World Cargo (BWAC) announced a reduction in its fuel surcharge. The surcharge will be GBP 0.34kg, US$ 0.50kg, €0.50kg, with effect from 19 October, 2006. Chris Bosworth, general manager commercial development said: "This is the second drop in the fuel surcharge level in as many weeks."