POWERFUL vacuum cleaners are being banned by the EU from September 1 which means no more models with motors over 1600 watts (most top makes are 2,000) will be built. Adviser group Which? is advising those who want a turbo dust buster, to grab one before they become obsolete.

It’s all about energy efficiency and vacuum cleaners will be rated A-G based on energy use, performance and dust emissions.

Even Mr Vac himself, Sir James Dyson has slammed the move, even though his own machines are all under 1,600 watts.

“Efficient technology isn’t the result of an energy label – it takes costly research and development,” he said. Which may suggest he’s a bit worried about competition.

Now, this does not concern me unduly as I have a relatively new Dyson which works wonders in a home occupied by a fabulous but furry Labrador. What could bother me, if I let my imagination run riot, is the perceived precedent it sets.

Obviously in our high energy consumption society we have to go with all things green. But if vacuum cleaners are being robbed of 400 watts of sucking power, will certain brands of washing machine also become outlawed and their horse-powered spin cycles become hamster-on-a-wheel-powered in order to save the planet?

And will there then be a reintroduction of the mangle that regularly used to mash our grannies’ fingers.

And what about microwaves? If their wattage is reduced it could take two hours to cook a jacket spud.

If so, we may as well bung it in the oven, unless, of course, it’s an electric oven which has been made similarly energy efficient. It would be quicker to build a fire, wrap it in silver foil and throw it on. Next stop is cave-dwelling.

Woah! Before we start brushing up on our hunter-gatherer skills, let me tell you about a demo I had in a kitchen shop this weekend.

I was shown the very latest in electric cooking hobs. This model cooked faster than anything I’ve ever seen before and it doesn’t even get hot! A pan of water boiled and I was instructed to put my hand on the hob. After four attempts, I touched it and it really was cold.

As soon as a pan is taken off the hob it switches itself off to save energy, the temperature can be raised and lowered in a millisecond and, joy of joys, it was 50 per cent more energy efficent, and therefore cheaper, than the latest gas equivalent.

So before you rush off to buy a turbo-charged vac, take a moment to consider that energy saving does not necessarily mean lack of efficiency. For those who invest in the technology, the opposite is the case.

Mr Dyson has held the vac monopoly with machines that comply to the new standards and work perfectly. Let’s just trust, that today’s energy researchers know what they’re doing without sending us back to the Stone Age.