I love this time of year and if we're lucky enough to have snow where I live (sadly it's very rare) I'm one of the first to don my ski gear and go out to enjoy it - whatever time of day or night I've discovered that it's fallen. Sadly it's missed me yet again but that doesn't mean that it's not very cold!

Working from home my bills tend to be higher than many people's with similar sizes and styles of houses so I do my best to ensure that I waste as little energy as possible by switching off lights that aren't needed, not overfilling the kettle or leaving the fridge or freezer open for too long and through clever use of the cooking facilities etc.

One of my real bugbears is those appliances that don't have an 'off' switch, which force users to either leave them on standby or switch them off at the plug, which means that - in the case of many hi-fi's - the clock and all the radio station settings are lost. My energy supplier tells me that anything left on standby will cost as much in electricity as if it is actually in use so I'm forever having to hunt for my favourite programmes.

Hmmm... where's my Christmas wish list?...

I've also got used to having the heating thermostat on a much lower setting and wearing extra layers of clothing but I still seem to have far higher gas bills than I did last year. My heart goes out to the elderly who've worked hard all their lives but can't afford to heat their homes at all and when I think about the situation they're in I get really cross!

It was with great delight then that I learned today that energy regulator Ofgem - following the recent announcements by three of the main suppliers that they are to increase prices yet again - has decided to investigate the recent energy price rises that have widened the suppliers' profit margins by almost 40%. I am sad that the review will not immediately lower our bills, but hold out hope that there might be a reduction in the future.

I'm also encouraged that those in the KBB industry are working hard to develop appliances that will keep our expenditure on gas and electricity to a minimum. I daresay it won't be long before consumers, while making a decision to buy, will be asking just how much an appliance will cost to run, rather than simply relying on the general ratings information that each appliance now has to display.

Yours,