Chris Mantle wrote:
snip
and if the Daily Mail is correct this morning no gas either

Another balls-up by successive Governments, who've promoted the burning
of gas in power stations (it now accounts for 40% of UK electricity
generation) as a quick fix to stave-off an inevitable problem of price
and supply, after the the British coal industry was prematurely
destroyed in the 1980s.

Together with the Industry's fat cats, they've squandered our
childrens' inheritance from the North Sea gas fields in a way that is
as criminal as if they had stoked the power station boilers with wheat.

Gas is an ideal multipurpose domestic fuel, easily delivered and
metered. Unlike solid fuel (and to a lesser extent oil) it is also
very good for burning on very small installations at potentially very
high efficiencies and without undue pollution problems. My condensing
combi, for instance, is rated at 91% efficiency.

What gas *shouldn't* be used for is large-scale electricity generation
in plants that are much less efficient (in terms of energy conversion)
but which could, by installing scubbing equipment to remove pollutants,
easily cope with lower grade fuels (e.g. coal) that are not suited to
other uses.

We're not so poor that we couldn't have afforded to spend a larger
proportion of our income over the past 20 years in paying a realistic
price for fuel and investing in plant that would have far better
conserved what indiginous supplies we had.

What we're now seeing is the price of 20+ years of a free market
economy in fuel, with Governments that have consistently abrogated
their responsibilities to look beyond the end of their political snouts
or above the rim of the trough.

Someone once said: "A Statesman looks to the next generation, whereas
a politician looks to the next election".

(Rant over).

- Tom.