Electricity
Private companies involved in the generation, transmission, distribution and supply of electricity are required to be licensed. There are no longer regional monopolies.
National Grid owns the electricity transmission system in England and Wales. Local distribution is still done by one of the 14 former public electricity companies. The supply of electricity is entirely commercial and therefore (in theory) competitive, and you can select the supplier from whom you buy your electricity and switch from one to another.1For a good summary of the position, see the review in R (on the application of Peak Gen Top Co Ltd and others) v Gas and Electricity Markets Authority [2018] All ER (D) 123 (Jun) In most cases, this is a choice between one of six major suppliers and a number of smaller licensed energy companies, unless you are able to access a smaller supply or establish some degree of independent generation of energy. Companies are obliged to make available a written statement giving a summary of your rights as a customer and the expected standards of performance in law when supplying you with power.2Reg 22 E(SP) Regs; reg 10 EG(SP)S Regs