Look out of the window and you’ll spot something pink whizzing past. Yes, pigs are as likely to fly as energy suppliers are to enjoy putting down their prices.

Let’s do the (not) really complicated maths on this.

World oil prices are lower now than they have been in five years.

Lower, that is, for the massively profitable oil-producing and wholesaling giants.

The black stuff now costs barely $50 US dollars a barrel, compared to $150 US dollars eight months ago.

This all seems to add up to a no-brainer.

Surely, if the firms supplying us with energy are paying less for the raw material, we should be paying a lot less for the end product, shouldn’t we?

Er, well, no apparently. Not if you are one of the money-grabbing big six energy suppliers.

We’ve already seen petrol and diesel prices fall, which is good news, if you drive a lot.

Not such good news if you’re a green campaigner who thinks cars are the work of the devil, but that’s another story.

The point is, at least petrol stations have passed on the price cut to motorists.

Shame the energy suppliers haven’t got the same respect for their customers.

It’s true that we’ve seen the first price drop this week but that’s only because the government has forced them to act.

Chancellor George Osborne took to Twitter to say: “Oil price was $53 pbl last night – lowest in 5yrs. Vital this is passed on to families at petrol pumps, through utility bills and air fares.”

And he launched a Treasury investigation into why they were not passing on these savings.

As for the energy suppliers, even though we all know they’re coining it, they’ve been lining up their excuses as to why even if they do put our bills down a bit, it won’t be by much.

Didn’t we know they buy gas three years in advance, so paid top-dollar for it?

And by the way, all their costs have gone up, poor things.

Tom Lyon, uSwitch.com energy expert, summed it up perfectly for me.

He pointed out: “It’s only right that consumers should benefit from lower wholesale energy costs. “Whilst quick to pass on rising costs, the big six energy suppliers are yet to reduce bills for the majority of their customers who are on standard tariffs. It’s now high time for one of the big six to cut their standard prices and help hard-pressed households, and lay down the gauntlet to the others to do the same.

“With the average bill now an eye-watering £1,265 – 168 per cent higher than a decade ago – it’s little wonder that energy costs top consumers’ concerns. The best advice for those worried about energy bills is to shop around, as our experience shows that on average most people who do can save over £220 a year.”

So, there you have it. Looks like a few more pigs will fly past before we can celebrate much cheaper ‘leccy bills.

  • Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.