I HAVE finished reading the long-awaited Cost of Energy Review which was commissioned by the Government (“Energy prices ‘are too high’”, The Herald, October 26). It is perhaps not perfect but the author’s proposals are better than the current over-complex and highly flawed system.

I implore politicians to adopt its key recommendations. Because subsidies for low-carbon energy and other costs associated with carbon reduction have increased energy bills by 25 per cent, these subsidy costs should be itemised separately on consumers’ bills.

Much of the decarbonising should be delayed, as it will be cheaper to achieve it in the future than at present.

Intermittent generators do not face the full transmission, distribution and back-up capacity costs they impose on the system. Professor Dieter Helm, the report’s author, proposes that those who cause system costs will have to bear them.

They will have to seek contracts to back up their intermittency, by seeking those that bring into play demand responses, storage and back-up generation. Exceptions would be made where they can enter into long-term contracts with purchasers of intermittent power.

Geoff Moore,

Braeface Park, Alness.