To all those of you of my generation (and older) who fell for the Tories' privatisation con in the 1980’s, most of you will be retired now, and if not you will be approaching retirement. If you told “Sid”, or were a “Sid”, and bought shares in the theft of British Gas from the British people, I just hope you can afford your gas bill now.

Those shares you bought – and quickly, no doubt, sold – have now put British Gas into the hands of greedy multinational shareholders. And that means that we, the British people, are buying our own gas back at ever spiralling prices. Yes, our very own North Sea gas, that we own – well – owned, is now held to ransom, and ransomed back to us by a multinational company.

Do not forget that British Gas would never have existed if it were not for all those local councils setting up local gas works. Indeed, industries like gas, electricity, Royal Mail and telephones were always in public ownership, throughout their existence. Until Thatcher.

Was that quick buck you made, back in the 1980’s, really worth it?

'If you told Sid in the 80s I hope you can afford your energy bills' - Yorkshire Post Letters