I TOOK the opportunity of a holiday to establish just how much of my electricity is used by essentials.  Turns out that my fridges and freezer use 30 per cent of my total, unsurprisingly as they are the only 24/7 devices in the house.

In Great Britain, our electricity consumption per person is just 70 per cent of that of 15 years ago. Our total energy is similarly reduced. Quite what WinAcc has in mind by urging us to “use less” is unclear (Letters, Bob Whitmarsh, August 18).  One might ask “how much less”?

Perhaps the answer lies elsewhere.  The main reason for the decline in our use of energy is the decline in the UK’s economy.  While our MP Steve Brine’s Letter from Westminster says “net zero is not about taking things away or wearing Becket’s hair shirt” it clearly is about Becket’s hair shirt and a shrinking economy. Industry has fled to friendlier climes, from which we import.

Despite the claims that renewables are ”nearly there”, wind and solar produce just 4 per cent of our total energy.  On any realistic assessment which includes solutions to intermittency, wind and solar must increase by about 40 times to meet net zero in 2050.

Ummmh! Really?

 

James Anderson

Wrights Close

South Wonston

Winchester