This must be made public as everyone I have told about it could not believe it and were very angry when they realised it was true.

This scam has been known for many years so I am amazed it has taken so long for this attempt to correct the glaring corruption.

It is a scandolous situation which never should have been allowed in the first place. The Scottish Parliament must change this to stop the public being ripped off to pay excessive Rocs to power firms. Furthermore, more energy could be produced if the original turbine sizes were to be reinstated, especially as many were built with public money prior to Rocs being introduced. Itis disgraceful that turbine sizes were reduced in order to gain ROCs. This must be stopped.

I worked on the refurbishment of several hydro-electric stations and I know that many would never have been eligible for subsidy if their windings had not been deliberately cut beforehand to reduce their generating capacity.

If public money is given to a private company to encourage it to invest in projects deemed to be to the public benefit, there should be clear evidence that the investment is for something the company would not have done on its own accord and that there is a clear and transparent equivalence between what is given to the company and what it invests.

Neither test was met when the Scottish Executive agreed that already existing hydro-electric power stations could be accredited under the Renewables Obligation scheme. In practice, it meant (a) a reduction in hydro generating capacity and (b) the generators being paid 20 times over for their investment at a time of widespread fuel poverty.