I?REFER to the letter from G W Sankey in last week's Review entitled Power from the Sea in which he advocates our renewable energy needs be met by installing turbines in the paths of currents round our coasts in preference to turbines working in the wind, and asks why the 'brains of government' don't look into it.

May I suggest instead: Power from the Sun? The disadvantages of tide power, wave power, wind power, nuclear power, oil power and coal power is that in all these cases utility companies get in on the act and provide electricity to our homes by means of transmission lines. They send the bills so we have to pay them for this service, they then send heavier bills without increasing the service, and every now and again they subject us to power cuts.

Solar power suffers from none of these disadvantages. When the system is perfected it will work on daylight without having to depend on sunlight, and it will have the ability to store electricity to use after dark. It will provide electricity for everything which is electric in your home. It will also provide power for your train, bus, lorry, car, and the source of power will keep going until the sun burns out. We will not require transmission lines, consequently we will not need electricity companies. We will not need gas companies either because everything will be electric. We will place less dependance on oil companies because we will not require petrol, nor will we require diesel.

What we will require is for the 'brains of government' to get out of bed at last, and start working on it.

– Anthony Reeve, Littledean.