OFFICIALS in Peter Mandelson’s Business Department say that if one third of Britain’s dwellings were fitted with solar panels they could produce as much electrical energy as five large power stations by 2020. This could be achieved, they said, if generous “feed-in” tariffs were introduced to enable householders to sell their surplus electricity to the National Grid at a high enough price to give them a return on their capital investment of up to 12 per cent.

But solar panels don’t produce electricity overnight and it would be necessary to have five stand-by gas-fired power stations operating overnight to compensate for the absence of power input to the grid from the solar panels.

The generous “feed-in” tariffs would result in higher power prices being charged to every electricity customer in Britain.

Why should two thirds of Britain’s dwellings pay higher electricity prices so that the other one third can have a good return on their uneconomic solar panels?

Jim Allan, Hartlepool.