Matthew Jenkins' BlogA blog about Worcester, politics and the environment

The new feed-in tariff was introduced by the government on 1st April 2010. You can now earn a fixed income for every kilowatt hour of electricity you generate and use in your property. You earn an additional fixed income for every kilowatt hour of electricity you generate and sell back to the grid.

For the average household using 4,500kWh of electricity a year, the Feed-In Tariffs will provide the following benefits if about 2.5 kW of solar PV panels were installed:

• 2,500kWh of electricity generated paying the homeowner £800 a year tax-free
• Remaining electricity costs reduced from £450 to £300 saving £150 a year
• Therefore the total annual benefit is £950 per year

Read the rest of this entry »

We need a hung parliament because the present first past the post system fails to give the electorate a fair say in how this country is run. Neither of the two main parties have carried out true parliamentary reform when they’ve had the chance. Some form of proportional representation is required to allow people to vote for the party they support, rather than having to vote tactically or not at all. Ideally, reform needs to include not just the voting system for the House of Commons, but also an elected second chamber and the restoration of the power to scrutinise legislation in the Commons. Read the rest of this entry »

Following the first televised election debate between Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg, in which the latter was rated the best by viewers, the Liberal Democrats have seen a huge increase in their opinion poll ratings. One poll even has them in first place.

What does this say about UK politics that as soon as a party, other than the big two – Labour and Conservative – gets some decent airtime, people suddenly take notice? Due to our first-past-the-post electoral system and the adversarial nature of the House of Commons, invariably the focus is on the government of the day and the official opposition. Read the rest of this entry »

With planes over most of northern Europe grounded due to the Icelandic volcano sending ash into the sky, this may be a good time to reassess our relationship with flying. With predictions of up to a week of no planes, people are having to find alternative ways of travelling within our borders and beyond. The question is, once the flight ban is lifted, will people return to flying in the same numbers or will the experience of other modes of transport, particularly the train, lead to less flights? Read the rest of this entry »

The aim of this blog site is to comment on events happening in Worcester and beyond, with a particular focus on politics and the environment. I’m standing in the upcoming election to Worcester City Council on May 6th for the Green Party in the Nunnery ward in which I live.