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From www Drax received £22bn in subsidies despite being UK’s largest emitter in 2023, though company rejects ‘flawed’ research Graham Watson's insight: For all the support for biomass-generated power it seems as though the biomass power station at Drax is responsible for 4 times the carbon emissions of the UK's largest coal plant. Even more remarkably, it also seems as though the government are still giving the company a £0.5bn clean energy subsidy. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
Thames Water’s turnaround plan to be supervised by independent monitor | Thames Water | The Guardian
From www Ofwat says monitor will have access to company’s financial information and report back to regulator Graham Watson's insight: OFWAT have seemingly decided that an independent regulator is going to be required to help oversee a turnaround of Thames Water, given the company's current predicament. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www White House calls decision – that could have major implications for web use – ‘victory for the American people’ Graham Watson's insight: Once again, it seems as though Google is in the crosshairs of the US competition authorities, with a judge ruling that it has acted anti-competitively to establish and maintain its monopoly on online searches and digital advertising. Of course, the company is going to appeal but it poses interesting questions about the nature of monopoly power and the difference between market structure, market conduct and market performance. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Memo tells ministers to disregard minimum service levels rules, as part of reforms to reorder industrial relations Graham Watson's insight: It seems as though the Labour Party are going to overturn proposed anti-strike legislation to reform industrial relations. And rightly so. Levels of strikes have been low historically, and whilst there have been high profile strikes on the railways and in the health service, elsewhere in the economy there's little strike action. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Change equivalent to removing 200,000 cars for a year, with capital’s air quality improving at faster rate than rest of England Graham Watson's insight: Good news for the supporters of the expansion of the ultra low emissions zone (ULEZ), with the news that air pollution has significantly dropped. Indeed the data suggests that the change is equivalent to removing 200,000 cars from the roads for a year, something that will have reduced air pollution and the negative externalities associated with it. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Which? study found increase of 38% for one brand, while cheaper options often scored better in taste tests Graham Watson's insight: More evidence of so-called greedflation, as ice cream and lolly manufacturers have used that cost of living crisis to increases there prices by as much as 38% over the past couple of years. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www As the world recovers from the largest IT outage in history, it shows the danger of one point of failure in IT infrastructure Graham Watson's insight: The global IT outage has highlighted the fact that monopolies are a concern because of their role in a cloud computing infrastructure that may make it more vulnerable if it is reliant on a monopoly provider of an essential service. Perhaps this might alter our view of whether monopolies, such as those enjoyed by Microsoft, are appropriate in the digital age. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www CEO and CFO given total of £616,000 for a year in which some residents struggled to go about daily lives Graham Watson's insight: One of my favourite topics - executive pay - I'll try to avoid commenting, and just ask whether you think bonuses like these are justified. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Regulator Ofcom says the new rules will come into force in January with price rises made clear before sale. Graham Watson's insight: The regulator OFCOM has intervened in the market for mobile phones and broadband, barring firms from mid-contract price rises. Instead, such moves must be transparent and set out at the point the consumer signs their contract. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www All 11 companies in England and Wales are now being probed after the regulator expands its investigation. Graham Watson's insight: The water regulator has broadened the scope of their investigation into sewage spills by announcing that all 11 companies in England and Wales will be subject to a higher level of scrutiny. The aim is to force faster compliance with existing law and reduce marine pollution. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Electric vehicle industry says spring data shows installations are keeping pace with rising battery sales Graham Watson's insight: The roll out of electric car infrastructure, has seen nearly 1m EV chargers installed, at a rate of one every 25 minutes. It seems as though we are moving away from internal combustion engines, albeit slowly. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Water firms have hit out at bill rises of £94 over the next five years after wanting bigger hikes. Graham Watson's insight: OFWAT has ruled that water companies will be allowed to increase their bills by an average of 21% over the next five years, with the regulator keen to limit the price increase to £19 until 2030. Whilst this might seem like a lot, it's far less than the companies themselves wanted - and they are not pleased arguing that it won't allow them to invest in infrastructure, reduce leaks and the number of sewage discharges. The ruling raises lots of interesting questions about the nature of regulation and the impact of this ruling on the firms' efficiency. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www New research shows levy has led to a significant drop in the amount of sugar in people’s diets Graham Watson's insight: This article does what is says on the tin. What is the sugar tax? And has it worked? It's a response to the latest research into the soft drinks levy - the so-called sugar tax - and the claim that it's led to a significant drop in sugar consumption. No comment yet. Sign up to comment |
From www The ruling found Google broke antitrust laws by making multibillion-dollar deals. Will those agreements evaporate? Graham Watson's insight: The Guardian looks at the implications of the anti-trust ruling against Google and its abuse of monopoly power. It speculates upon what's likely to happen next: will the company will be broken up - either voluntarily or not - and the fact that the company themselves are going to appeal the ruling. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www The US government says it wants 'structural relief' after a judge found the search giant broke the law. Graham Watson's insight: This article drills down into the US ruling that Google has obtained its dominant position in the market for search engines and digital advertising via anti-competitive practices. The suggestion is that the competition authorities are likely to want to see "structural relief" and this might involve breaking up the company, either voluntarily or by government edict. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Thames Water, Northumbrian Water and Yorkshire Water face fines for repeated sewage leaks. Graham Watson's insight: It seems as though the regulator is going to levy significant fines on three water companies - Thames Water, Northumbrian Water and Yorkshire Water - for historical sewage leaks. In the first place, this is an attempt to tackle the negative externalities of marine pollution, but no doubt the first named company will suggest that this is another intervention that is going to discourage investment and drive the company ever closer to bankruptcy. I don't know where you stand on this - but might the fine not reflect years of mismanagement by remarkably well-rewarded executives. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www The Competition and Markets Authority says poor competition cost British motorists £1.6bn last year. Graham Watson's insight: The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) report that low levels of competition in the sector has meant that British motorists have spent £1.6bn more than they should have last year. Equally, the profit margins of all petrol retailers have increased since 2019, with those of supermarkets doubling in that time. According to the article: "Figures from the watchdog revealed that in 2019, supermarkets were making a margin of 4.4% on fuel but that has nearly doubled to 8%. Non-supermarket petrol stations made a 6.8% margin five years ago. It is now 8.5%." No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Manufacturers say support packages are required to electric vehicles more affordable. Graham Watson's insight: There's a call for more government intervention to help the transition to electric vehicles, with the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) calling for help in persuading people to shift to electric cars by 2030. This comes at a time when new figures reveal that EV production fell by 7.6% in the first half of this year, at the same time as the new government has reinstated the ban of sales of new petrol vehicles from 2030. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www From halloumi to provoleta to comté, sales of overseas cheeses are up as UK tastes turn to the exotic Graham Watson's insight: Changing consumer tastes in the market for cheese - as UK consumers are becoming increasingly exotic. Interestingly, this might be a result of both discounters, who stock foreign cheeses and more upmarket stores. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Regulator the CMA finds deal will not substantially affect competition for mortgages and credit cards Graham Watson's insight: The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) have approved Nationwide's takeover of Virgin Money, ruling that it won't have a noticeable effect on competition in the market for mortgages and credit cards. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Fast fashion generated almost two million tonnes of waste last year, with more than 90% of clothes going to landfill, according to the Earth Organisation. The industry is looking to technology to help it reduce waste. To find out more, the BBC's Tadgh Enright spoke to Hal Watts, the CEO of Unmade, a software company that allows buyers to order clothing items as they need them, on demand. Graham Watson's insight: This BBC clip looks at the environmental credentials of fast fashion and how technology is making the sector less wasteful and more efficient, reducing the associated waste. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Figure represents 64-66% of global output of tetrafluoromethane and hexafluoroethane, MIT study finds Graham Watson's insight: Despite all the environmental progress made in recent years, not least in China, it seems as though the Chinese economy is still a major polluter, accounting for two-thirds of global tetrafluoromethane and hexafluoroethane emissions. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Electric vehicles are ‘batteries on wheels’ that can put energy back into the National Grid when solar panels and windfarms do not provide much power Graham Watson's insight: In this Guardian article, Jasper Jolly looks at the impact of EVs on the UK's energy security, arguing that whereas some see them as adding to electricity demand, and potentially overwhelming the network. However, he argues that these vehicles are potentially going to add to generating extra capacity, because they are effectively "batteries on wheels". No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www Ofwat says UK’s biggest water company will come under additional scrutiny as it faces prospect of restructuring or temporary renationalisation Graham Watson's insight: Another aspect of OFWAT's review of the sector was the decision to place Thames Water into a “turnaround oversight regime” and thus to “heightened regulatory” measures as a result of its ongoing problems. The net result is that the company will need to produce a "delivery action plan" and regularly report to the regulator. No comment yet. Sign up to comment
From www South East Water warns it needs more money from investors ahead of an Ofwat ruling on spending. Graham Watson's insight: And still they come; another water company, this time South East Water has published its results and in doing so has announced that it needs extra cash from investors if it is to remain solvent ahead of a ruling on future spending plans. Is another water company on the verge of bankruptcy and, once again, what does this say about the privatisation of the sector. No comment yet. Sign up to comment |
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