Energy consumer “Bill of Rights” could be ditched by EC

30/06/2008

Consumer watchdog 'energywatch' says that The European Commission is quietly shelving plans for consumer protection following intense lobbying by powerful energy groups, energywatch warned today. 

 

'energywatch' said that consumers Europe-wide would be left wide open to market abuse. The EC’s apparent u-turn is on two key elements of consumer protection: a consumer charter and an order for the huge energy conglomerates to break up their energy empires to allow competitors in.

 

The EC decision is in direct opposition to two decisive votes by the European MEPs in favour of a charter and the “unbundling” of the energy monopolies, said energywatch.

 

energywatch has spent months trying to persuade the EC to include a charter in its new directives for the European energy market which is opening up to competition, a decade after the UK.

 

Allan Asher, Chief Executive of energywatch, said: "We are dismayed to see the Commission dump consumer protection measures. European consumers are in danger of suffering from the gross market failures that have occurred in the UK.”

 

The EC intends to substitute a charter of rights and responsibilities with a vague checklist of questions and answers on energy issues, energywatch said.

 

There are also plans for a Citizens Energy Forum which is due to have its first meeting in London in October. energywatch says it risks being little more than a talking shop.

 

Mr. Asher said: “We have yet to see the terms of reference for the forum, proposed membership criteria, draft agenda or papers. “The forum will be useless unless it has a precise objective and time limit for achieving change.  Where effective change has not been achieved within the agreed time frame, action will need to be taken for more prescriptive legislation to ensure consumer rights are protected.”

 

In another move, a number of countries led by France and Germany have put pressure on the EC bureaucrats to water down the mandatory “unbundling” of Europe’s energy conglomerates which control the market from production and generation to distribution and supply.

 

Mr. Asher said: “As the bitter experience in the UK has shown, opening markets to competition is pointless unless consumers are the beneficiaries. Millions of consumers in the United Kingdom have been on the receiving end of shoddy treatment from their suppliers.  It will happen across Europe if that focus is lost.

 

“Member state governments have shown a disturbing lack of regard for consumer interests in giving in to pressure which would allow the European energy monopoly to continue.”

 

“The European Commission is set on a course of failure unless effective consumer protection and safeguards against energy poverty are built in to the liberalisation project at the start."

 

He added: “It is clear that the elected members have a far higher regard for consumer needs than the bureaucrats who have caved in far too easily. I hope the MEPs will keep up the pressure for energy market reform.”