Jul 2008 31

Dependent Watchdog4

"As the independent gas and electricity watchdog, our mission is simple: to get the best deal we can for energy consumers."

So says energywatch [sic]. And over the last 24 hours they have been sounding off mightily over the hike in British Gas prices. Indeed, Campaign Director Adam Scorer has just laid into Centrica for daring to increase prices while still in profit:

"Prices are going up because £992 million profit in six months isn’t enough. British Gas customers, still reeling from 35 per cent price hikes, might have expected Centrica to be losing money. They will be staggered at the rude health of Centrica’s half year profits. Customers will be outraged to learn that while they ponder how to make ends meet Centrica’s shareholders are enjoying an increase in their dividends."

Well, that’s fair enough you say. Independent consumer watchdogs are quite entitled to put their case, even if it is little more than a left-wing anti-market rant.

Well yes.

Except that energywatch is not independent. It is a tax-funded quango which costs us £15m pa (2006-07 Report and Accounts). Its rants are entirely dependent on us taxpayers for their funding.

It gets better. In 2006-07, Campaign Director Adam Scorer got paid no less than £75,000 (including pension accrual). His boss Allan Assher got paid c £125,000 (including pension). Of our money.

Do you want to pay for this nonsense?

No, of course not.

That’s another £15m pa saved.

(Let’s hope George Osborne is keeping a note of all these cost cutting ideas).

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Mike Denham is a former Treasury economist who worked extensively on public spending and fiscal analysis during the 1970s and early 1980s. His work included cost benefit appraisal of public projects, analysis of public sector cost inflation and value for money studies.

For the next 20 years he worked in the City as an investment manager, closely following fiscal and monetary policy developments. Now semi-retired, he scrutinises public spending on the TaxPayers' Alliance Burning Our Money blog.

Mike studied PPE at Oxford University, and has a Masters in Economics from the LSE. He lives in Surrey with his wife, and has two sons.



  • Ken Partington

    Two things that seem to be TPA policy that I DO NOT agree with:
    (1)The Civil List should be scrapped. I do not want to pay for the Royal Family (even though it is bandied about that they “only cost us 65p each per year”) (2)The Queen should be charged a rent for her residences.(3) Every person in this country should be on a national DNA database. Ken Partington

  • Ken Partington

    The following are my views on what seems to be TPA policy:
    (1)The Civil List should be scrapped – I do not want to pay for the Royal Family (even though it is bandied about that they “only cost us 65p each per year”) (2)The Queen should be charged a rent for her residences.(3) Every person in this country should be on a national DNA database. Ken Partington

  • http://Talktalk.net R Wells

    Re your comments on Energywatch. It’s good
    informing us what’s wrong,but what do they do about it?.As with most politicians they rant and rave but never do anything.We need a change of system where we make the decisions.

  • http://www.brokerpolice.com Mortgage advice expert

    I agree on most of what you had to say. If I may add that the new FHA bill passed by congress and signed by the president should help a lot of distressed homeowners