£11bn smart meter plans ‘risk fiasco’: MPs warn only energy suppliers will benefit

It will also allow them to cut off homes at the click of a mouse

Sean Poulter
Mail Online
January 17, 2012

Families will have to pay higher bills to fund the Government-backed scheme to have the digital equipment installed by 2019.

And there is no evidence the energy giants will pass on to customers any of the millions of pounds they will save with the introduction of the new technology, MPs say.

Smart meters give real-time information on a home’s energy use and cost, and Energy Secretary Chris Huhne has backed them, arguing they will encourage families to cut back to save money while also lowering carbon emissions.

Energy firms support the technology because it can supply precise meter readings automatically over the mobile phone  network, thereby allowing them to lay-off thousands of meter readers and billing staff.

Read full report here

This article was posted: Tuesday, January 17, 2012 at 8:14 am

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