Business speaks up?
Dec 17, 2013
Bishop Hill in Climate: Parliament

There are signs that some members of the business community may finally have decided to speak up about energy policy.  Yesterday, the head of oil refiner Ineos criticised the absurd Hinckley Point deal struck by the coalition government:

"Forget it," Mr Ratcliffe said in an interview with the BBC's business editor Robert Peston. "Nobody in manufacturing is going to go near [that price]."

Mr Ratcliffe said: "The UK probably has the most expensive energy in the world.

"It is more expensive than Germany, it is more expensive than France, it is much, much, more expensive than America. It is not competitive at all, on the energy front, I am afraid."

Commenters have noted his remarks on the TV news last night in which he described the freeze on new investment from energy-intensive businesses, scared off by the lunacy of the British political class.

And today, the head of Aggreko has called for politicians to get out of the energy business.

If it signifies anything at all, it's probably too little, too late, but at least the message may be getting through.

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