Martin Horwood
Main Page: Martin Horwood (Liberal Democrat - Cheltenham)
Mr Davey
The investigations will determine whether anyone has been involved in a racket. I will not prejudge those investigations, although the right hon. Gentleman seems to wish to do so. He is concerned about the role of people involved in hedging, but that can be quite important for a market, in that it can make it more liquid, which can reduce prices. I would counsel him against suggesting that we completely pull apart the liquidity of the gas market.
Martin Horwood (Cheltenham) (LD)
These allegations could expose real abuse of hard-pressed families, but will the Secretary of State be wary of the Opposition’s call to break up Ofgem? As the NHS and the BBC might testify, reorganisation can sometimes make things worse, rather than better. The important thing is that the regulators take their time, reform the system if they have to, and put in place real lessons learned for the future protection of consumers.
Mr Davey
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. It is completely wrong to jump to conclusions until the regulators—in this case, the FSA and Ofgem—have had a chance to do their work. I really cannot see that a massive reorganisation would help at the moment. We need to ensure that the regulators have the powers that they need to do their job, and we will ensure that that happens.