Displaying items by tag: Ofcom

Thursday, 02 March 2023 20:22

Energy costs changing

The amount suppliers charge for energy was cut by Ofgem to £3,280 as wholesale prices fell. But bills will still rise in April as government help eases. Ofgem's announcement does not affect each household’s payment for energy units but it reduces costs that the government faces. Average household bills will rise from £2,100 to £3,000 annually in April because government help (Energy Price Guarantee) becomes less generous and a £400 winter discount on bills ends. The TUC’s general secretary said, ‘Energy bills are out of control. The government must cancel April's hike. As costs of wholesale gas plummet, ministers have no excuse for not stepping in.’ Under the government guarantee, a household using a typical amount of gas and electricity in England, Wales and Scotland is paying £2,500 a year. Without state support, that annual bill would have been £4,279 since January.

Published in British Isles
Friday, 14 February 2020 10:27

Ofcom to have more powers over social media

Until now, firms like Facebook, Tiktok, YouTube, Snapchat, and Twitter have largely been self-regulating. New powers will be given to Ofcom to force such firms to take action over harmful content. Companies have defended their own rules about taking down unacceptable content, but critics say independent rules are needed to keep people safe. It is unclear what penalties Ofcom will be able to enforce to target violence, cyber-bullying and child abuse as they make tech firms responsible for protecting people from such content. Pray for wise action to ensure that content is removed quickly. Also, there is growing evidence that Internet use can harm mental health, but research is still lacking. In January leading UK psychiatrists said that tech companies must be made to share data and pay tax to fund research into the risks and benefits of social media use on children’s mental health. See

Published in British Isles