Smart meters for energy to be voluntary
Rowena Mason writes in the Daily Telegraph:
Plans to force households to have energy smart meters installed have been shelved over health and privacy fears.
The Government had promised that every household would have a smart meter by 2019 in a £12 billion programme to stop gas and electricity bills being estimated.
Officials are devising plans to allow people to reject the smart meters, which communicate remotely from households to energy companies.
The move is a victory for campaign groups and backbench MPs, who raised concerns with ministers that the devices emit electromagnetic radiation 24 hours a day and cannot be turned off.
Privacy campaigners were worried that half-hourly data on energy usage collected by smart meters could give clues about people’s way of life, such as when someone is on holiday, at work or asleep. Sources in the Department for Energy and Climate Change said the proposal was shelved to avoid the programme getting “bogged down” in lengthy legal disputes.
February 1st, 2012 at 11:26
“The move is a victory for campaign groups and backbench MPs, who raised concerns with ministers that the devices emit electromagnetic radiation 24 hours a day and cannot be turned off”.
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.
Those dumb politicians again. They’re such a riot! Look around and count the “devices” that “emit electromagnetic radiation 24 hours a day”. Street lamps, fridges, all the countless gadgets left in “sleep” mode, central heating boilers, not to mention the actual mains supply coming into every house and business building. (And of course the indispensable mobile phones).
The real objection to “smart” meters (why are things always called the opposite of what they really are?) is that they offer a superb opportunity for sabotage – either on an individual basis or against the country as a whole. I’m reminded of the unfortunate man in “Dune” who has had a plug installed in his heart, attached to alength of cord, so that the wicked Baron Harkonnen can snatch it out and kill him at any instant he pleases. At least that man didn’t do it to himself…
February 6th, 2012 at 10:28
Don’t laugh too soon. It is a dead cert that if you don’t want a “smart” meter you will have to pay a surcharge for reading your meter, even if you have to do it yourself and email it to them.
Various companies do a similar thing to try to force people to pay by direct debit. I would rather pay than give their dreadful computer systems direct access to my bank account.
Ian