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Politics

Centre Party touts power price regulation

Published: 3 Feb 11 09:23 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/31806/20110203/

Swedes need protection from sky-high electricity prices, the Centre Party has proposed with party leader Maud Olofsson arguing for the regulation of floating electricity price plans.

Maud Olofsson, who is serves in the coalition Alliance government as enterprise and energy minister, came in for criticism last week after responding to complaints about high electricity prices by offering tips on how to save power.

Olofsson has now gone on the offensive, criticising the electricity market in an opinion article in the Dagens Nyheter (DN) daily on Thursday.

"Therefore the Centre Party and I want to regulate the electricity companies' pricing. The purpose is to guarantee a reasonable price also for customers who have not made an active choice," she said.

Customers with fluctuating price plans, so-called "tillsvidareavtal", which are the default plans offered by many firms for customers not selecting an alternative, are typically the most expensive deals.

Insulate your homes, install triple-glazed windows, replace incandescent bulbs and turn off the lights, was the advice offered by Olofsson last week to combat skyrocketing electricity bills.

The minister explained that insulating the attic would save 3,300 kronor ($513) per year for the average home owner, and added that she had made the investment back in the 1970s in the wake of the oil crisis.

Olofsson's tips and advice were not however welcomed by all parties.

“I think that very many people view this advice as a provocation,” Joacim Olsson of the Swedish Homeowners Association (Villaägarnas riksförbund) told the TT news agency.

Several days later, the Nordea bank released a survey which showed that every third Swede expressed concern over their upcoming electricity bill.

TT/The Local/pvs (news@thelocal.se)

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09:35 February 3, 2011 by Great Scott
Only last week this idiot was telling everyone to turn off their lights. However she must have read The Local, seeing that the problem was skyrocketing electricity prices. But what will this conservative fool do, nothing. It's all too late, the power companies have got their prices to a high level for max profits. Putting control in place after the horse has bolted is crazy.
10:25 February 3, 2011 by big5
Don't blame the centre-right for this mess. The electricity market was deregulated by the Social Democrats in the late 1990s. At the time they promised consumers that it would lead to lower prices, but it was actually just about old-boy-network corruption.
11:24 February 3, 2011 by samwise
if the electricity prices are high, people say it'll destroy the poor because they can't afford it.

if the electricity prices are low, people say it'll destroy the planet because we end up consuming too much.

even we implement soviet style price control, how are the bureaucrats supposed to determine the prices?

Price control is an extremely old idea, it has been tried forever. The elites love it, we all know why.
12:42 February 3, 2011 by Kevin Walker
Well Maud Ollsson,explain This?

I have a modern 3 year old house,wth no loft,so no need for insulation and we have 3 glass windows and I am always switching

off lights as if I have some kind of obssesive compulsive behaviour.

And I am getting bills of 7000kr for one month thats 4 weeks.It must be the most rip- off immorally wrong sky high prices in europe.We need to probably go on the streets and protest over this.Thats probably the only way to get the government to listen.Why should we have to pay a double mortgage,this money we should be saving towards a holiday.Shame on you Sweden.
21:17 February 3, 2011 by miss79
Maud -ja livet livet, ja livet livet..shake ur booty boobs lady..lol
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