I'm going to hell in a handcart
That's according to Carole Malone in the Sunday Mirror, running Britain down as only a British person can. The problem? Nothing works and everybody's leaving the country (according to her, 5 million people have already left, so thank me for bringing in another Eastern European and two dependents to fill the gap).
To blame for bringing Britain to its knees is a certain EDF (I sit up with a jolt of recognition) whose alleged incompetence plunged half of London into darkness during the heatwave last week. Understandably, the acronym was not expanded (Electricité de France -easily translatable too!). That would have added an inconvenient nuance to the general 'Britain is crap' gloom.
This is not going to turn into a rant about EDF, as they are one of the few organs of the French state that I have not had the pleasure of shouting across a perpex screen at. But that is my point. EDF* is an organ of the state. Its employees are fonctionnaires, with all of the delights (for them and not generally for the 'clients') that entails. What is such a company, that should have liberalised but has not, being allowed into the free market of another country to mess about with its energy supply? Trust the Brits to miss the point and end up blaming themselves. Although we are to blame of course, for being suckered. The last sentence had me hooting with laughter. 'If all else fails, emigrate!' Good idea. I think I will.
And it's nice to know my functional relationship with EDF will continue in the land of fair play. I think I'll pack a generator** for my handcart, just in case.
*ILLEGAL AID FOR EDF
On 16 October 2002, the European Commission ordered Electricité de France (EdF) to repay 900 million Euros (US$877 million) in unfair state aid. EU Competition Commissioner Mario Monti said that because the French government has guaranteed that EdF will not go bankrupt, EdF has profited from below-market interest rates. The French government, however, has rejected the allegations. State-owned EdF has bought up utilities in many countries, seeking to position itself as a global leader before its home market in France opens fully to outside competition.
Forbes.com, 16 October 2002; Newsday.com, 14 October 2002
**Extract from last week's Daily Telegraph. The last paragraph is particularly intriguing:
Energy companies are back in the firing line with an acceleration in the pace of price increases in the middle of a heatwave.
French-owned EDF Energy has followed Scottish Power with a third rise in the cost of gas and electricity - 19pc and 8pc respectively - in less than a year.
EDF with 5m customers, largely in the South, has now raised gas prices by 52pc and electricity tariffs by 25pc since August last year. From July 31 customers will be paying an average of £971 for their lighting and heat.
They resulted from the faster-than-expected rundown of North Sea production and the failure of continental suppliers to take advantage of a more favourable British market.
EU officials are investigating what they have described as a "dysfunctional market" after raiding energy companies in the search for evidence that supplies were deliberately withheld from the British market to avoid shortages in their own markets.
To blame for bringing Britain to its knees is a certain EDF (I sit up with a jolt of recognition) whose alleged incompetence plunged half of London into darkness during the heatwave last week. Understandably, the acronym was not expanded (Electricité de France -easily translatable too!). That would have added an inconvenient nuance to the general 'Britain is crap' gloom.
This is not going to turn into a rant about EDF, as they are one of the few organs of the French state that I have not had the pleasure of shouting across a perpex screen at. But that is my point. EDF* is an organ of the state. Its employees are fonctionnaires, with all of the delights (for them and not generally for the 'clients') that entails. What is such a company, that should have liberalised but has not, being allowed into the free market of another country to mess about with its energy supply? Trust the Brits to miss the point and end up blaming themselves. Although we are to blame of course, for being suckered. The last sentence had me hooting with laughter. 'If all else fails, emigrate!' Good idea. I think I will.
And it's nice to know my functional relationship with EDF will continue in the land of fair play. I think I'll pack a generator** for my handcart, just in case.
*ILLEGAL AID FOR EDF
On 16 October 2002, the European Commission ordered Electricité de France (EdF) to repay 900 million Euros (US$877 million) in unfair state aid. EU Competition Commissioner Mario Monti said that because the French government has guaranteed that EdF will not go bankrupt, EdF has profited from below-market interest rates. The French government, however, has rejected the allegations. State-owned EdF has bought up utilities in many countries, seeking to position itself as a global leader before its home market in France opens fully to outside competition.
Forbes.com, 16 October 2002; Newsday.com, 14 October 2002
**Extract from last week's Daily Telegraph. The last paragraph is particularly intriguing:
Energy companies are back in the firing line with an acceleration in the pace of price increases in the middle of a heatwave.
French-owned EDF Energy has followed Scottish Power with a third rise in the cost of gas and electricity - 19pc and 8pc respectively - in less than a year.
EDF with 5m customers, largely in the South, has now raised gas prices by 52pc and electricity tariffs by 25pc since August last year. From July 31 customers will be paying an average of £971 for their lighting and heat.
They resulted from the faster-than-expected rundown of North Sea production and the failure of continental suppliers to take advantage of a more favourable British market.
EU officials are investigating what they have described as a "dysfunctional market" after raiding energy companies in the search for evidence that supplies were deliberately withheld from the British market to avoid shortages in their own markets.
posted by francesca tereshkova | 2:16 PM
3 Comments:
You work for EDF? No! Are you a fonctionnaire, or is it different for Brits? ; )
Seems to me we were reading recently of all those Frogs queueing up to work in Blighty because of the favourable labour laws - the ones that don't give you enough dosh to buy party dresses and complete camping equipment (hope you get to use it!!) when sacked. So it can't be all bad.
You read the Mirror? I hope you were looking for quotes ;)
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