Hunterian Posted December 16, 2023 Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 It’s not often I see a news story that boils my piss but here we go. Ofgen suggesting that you pay slightly more in your utility bill to subsidise those that are struggling to pay. People struggling to pay is bad news and these are tough times for many but why ask others to pay? Instead why don’t the Utilities themselves, instead of paying dividends, give these people a rebate and pay lower dividends? Are times really that tough for cash strapped utilities? If this was France they’d already be rioting! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALBIONSAINT Posted December 16, 2023 Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 2 hours ago, Hunterian said: It’s not often I see a news story that boils my piss but here we go. Ofgen suggesting that you pay slightly more in your utility bill to subsidise those that are struggling to pay. People struggling to pay is bad news and these are tough times for many but why ask others to pay? Instead why don’t the Utilities themselves, instead of paying dividends, give these people a rebate and pay lower dividends? Are times really that tough for cash strapped utilities? If this was France they’d already be rioting! Off with their gas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chalky1 Posted December 16, 2023 Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 Do we get the many back once the arrears are paid off? I think not Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portmahomack saint Posted December 16, 2023 Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 (edited) 8 hours ago, Hunterian said: It’s not often I see a news story that boils my piss but here we go. Ofgen suggesting that you pay slightly more in your utility bill to subsidise those that are struggling to pay. People struggling to pay is bad news and these are tough times for many but why ask others to pay? Instead why don’t the Utilities themselves, instead of paying dividends, give these people a rebate and pay lower dividends? Are times really that tough for cash strapped utilities? If this was France they’d already be rioting! Ya dancer... I'm gonna stick ma heating on then full bung and Faraway can pay it Edited December 16, 2023 by portmahomack saint Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunterian Posted December 16, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 1 hour ago, portmahomack saint said: Ya dancer... I'm gonna stick ma heating on then full bung and Faraway can pay it Exactly, why pay when some other chufter can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
faraway saint Posted December 16, 2023 Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 4 minutes ago, Hunterian said: Exactly, why pay when some other chufter can. Brilliant word, no heard that for years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portmahomack saint Posted December 16, 2023 Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 (edited) My house is roasting now And every light in the house is on Edited December 16, 2023 by portmahomack saint Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
faraway saint Posted December 16, 2023 Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 5 minutes ago, portmahomack saint said: My house is roasting now And every light in the house is on So is my sauna. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunterian Posted December 16, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2023 1 hour ago, faraway saint said: So is my sauna. Get the microwave on for those burgers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W6er Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 On 12/16/2023 at 9:57 AM, Hunterian said: It’s not often I see a news story that boils my piss but here we go. Ofgen suggesting that you pay slightly more in your utility bill to subsidise those that are struggling to pay. People struggling to pay is bad news and these are tough times for many but why ask others to pay? Instead why don’t the Utilities themselves, instead of paying dividends, give these people a rebate and pay lower dividends? Are times really that tough for cash strapped utilities? If this was France they’d already be rioting! Don't a lot of pension funds invest in utility companies, given that they're relatively demand inelastic and guarantee a relatively stable yield? Paying lower dividends would potentially affect folks' pension increases. I know it's nice to think folk with private pensions are affluent, but that's not the case, necessarily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W6er Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 I just realised this is in the General St Mirren Discussion forum! 🤣 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunterian Posted December 19, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 6 hours ago, W6er said: Don't a lot of pension funds invest in utility companies, given that they're relatively demand inelastic and guarantee a relatively stable yield? Paying lower dividends would potentially affect folks' pension increases. I know it's nice to think folk with private pensions are affluent, but that's not the case, necessarily. Interesting. EDF is one of the biggest suppliers and owned by the French Government. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W6er Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 1 hour ago, Hunterian said: Interesting. EDF is one of the biggest suppliers and owned by the French Government. So presumably it will not have shareholders then and will not pay dividends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callum Gilhooley Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/uk-news/edf-energy-bills-france-uk-24750274 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callum Gilhooley Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 Just think , if some f**king looney government hadn’t sold off these (Utility) companies to fund their friends greed, we could be in a situation where there was enough money in the coffers to help fund proper pensions and stop the elderly from freezing in their own homes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antrin Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 38 minutes ago, W6er said: So presumably it will not have shareholders then and will not pay dividends. No…. The French government simply uses the profit taken from its foreign investments to subsidise the costs for its citizens. As any civilised government of the people, by the people should do. This is just a further reminder (if it was needed) that Thatcher was an evil bastard. She hated Nationally owned and utilised natural resources when someone could exploit them for profit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albanian Buddy Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 16 minutes ago, antrin said: No…. The French government simply uses the profit taken from its foreign investments to subsidise the costs for its citizens. As any civilised government of the people, by the people should do. This is just a further reminder (if it was needed) that Thatcher was an evil bastard. She hated Nationally owned and utilised natural resources when someone could exploit them for profit. There are so many utility and non utility companies that operate under a UK brand name but are foreign owned that most of the public have no idea (or likely care) about. No doubt there is a good image representing such “deals”. Is it the French that own majority of our whisky distilleries? This group are trying to make change, but I fear that it’s too late in many ways. https://weownit.org.uk/about-us Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antrin Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 8 minutes ago, Albanian Buddy said: There are so many utility and non utility companies that operate under a UK brand name but are foreign owned that most of the public have no idea (or likely care) about. No doubt there is a good image representing such “deals”. Is it the French that own majority of our whisky distilleries? This group are trying to make change, but I fear that it’s too late in many ways. https://weownit.org.uk/about-us Dunno about a majority, but Glen Morange is Luis Vuitton and Moët Chandon, while Scapa proudly displays its Pernod heritage… Diageo (a “British multinational” if that makes any sense) runs a lot of “scotch” production, from Brora to Fife etc.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W6er Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 1 hour ago, antrin said: No…. The French government simply uses the profit taken from its foreign investments to subsidise the costs for its citizens. As any civilised government of the people, by the people should do. This is just a further reminder (if it was needed) that Thatcher was an evil bastard. She hated Nationally owned and utilised natural resources when someone could exploit them for profit. Was it not to also prevent strike action, due to the blackouts in the 1970s? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beyond our ken Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 31 minutes ago, W6er said: Was it not to also prevent strike action, due to the blackouts in the 1970s? No, it was all about Keith Joseph's and Thatcher's vision that if you make the rich richer then they would trickle their wealth down to the rest of us. In the end, they trickled something else down on us. She took on the unions directly, most of the black outs were caused by fuel shortages, oil in the early-mid 70s and coal in the late 70s, although some of those shortages were partly driven by labour disputes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antrin Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 28 minutes ago, W6er said: Was it not to also prevent strike action, due to the blackouts in the 1970s? How could flogging off National Assets make any impact on people’s right to strike/work or not? You may not have noticed, but there are widespread industrial actions being taken STILL throughout the UK. Thatcher has impoverished UK in many ways but not made a jot of difference on the strike front. (I’m assuming you approve of the constant running down of NHS in order to make it easier to flog off the most lucrative sectors to US companies? Not for greed, of course, but to stop nurses, doctors, consultants, support staff from withdrawing their labour?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antrin Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 1 minute ago, beyond our ken said: No, it was all about Keith Joseph's and Thatcher's vision that if you make the rich richer then they would trickle their wealth down to the rest of us. In the end, they trickled something else down on us. To be fair, they now just shovel it straight into our rivers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALBIONSAINT Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 32 minutes ago, antrin said: How could flogging off National Assets make any impact on people’s right to strike/work or not? You may not have noticed, but there are widespread industrial actions being taken STILL throughout the UK. Thatcher has impoverished UK in many ways but not made a jot of difference on the strike front. (I’m assuming you approve of the constant running down of NHS in order to I make it easier to flog off the most lucrative sectors to US companies? Not for greed, of course, but to stop nurses, doctors, consultants, support staff from withdrawing their labour?) Really? The NHS has a productivity problem, more doctors and more nurses than in 2019. It’s a money pit that consumes money at an alarming rate but has worst productivity figures than most comparative European health systems. I am mindful that this is not the politics section and this thread should probably be moved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W6er Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 45 minutes ago, antrin said: How could flogging off National Assets make any impact on people’s right to strike/work or not? You may not have noticed, but there are widespread industrial actions being taken STILL throughout the UK. Thatcher has impoverished UK in many ways but not made a jot of difference on the strike front. (I’m assuming you approve of the constant running down of NHS in order to make it easier to flog off the most lucrative sectors to US companies? Not for greed, of course, but to stop nurses, doctors, consultants, support staff from withdrawing their labour?) Why would you assume anything? That's rather presumptuous. I thought it was common knowledge that public sector workers are more likely to strike than private sector workers: https://www.civilserviceworld.com/news/article/publicly-funded-industries-account-for-96-of-strike-days-says-report Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albanian Buddy Posted December 19, 2023 Report Share Posted December 19, 2023 2 hours ago, W6er said: I thought it was common knowledge that public sector workers are more likely to strike than private sector workers Is that because many private sector companies abhor trade unions and actively discourage workers from joining? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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