MP, Labour’s Shadow Business Secretary,
commenting on news that the Government is calling in the Cumbria
coal mine plan, said:
"After months of pressure, Ministers have finally been forced to
act.
"The truth is that this mine is terrible for our fight against
climate change, won’t help our steel industry and won’t create
secure jobs.
"The saga of this mine is a symptom of a government that isn’t
serious about its climate ambitions and refuses to invest at
scale in a green future to provide the jobs that workers have a
right to expect.
"The Government must now block the mine and focus instead on real
solutions to secure the long-term future of UK steel - and create
low-carbon jobs in Cumbria and across the country with a proper
green stimulus."
, Liberal
Democrat Spokesperson for the Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs has welcomed reports that the Secretary of State
for Housing, Communities and Local Government has decided to call
in plans for the controversial West Cumbria coal mine.
The Liberal Democrats have led calls for the plans for the deep
coal mine to be axed because of environmental concerns. A local
public inquiry will now be launched.
said:
"It's fantastic news that the Government have at long last
finally woken up to the fact that this mine would be an almighty
backwards step in our fight against climate change.
"In the year that Britain hosts COP26, it is blindingly obvious
that we won't be taken seriously on the world stage with this
coal mine hanging round our neck.
"I hope this public inquiry leads to these plans finally being
axed, and the Government instead looks at bringing well-paid,
long-term, green jobs to Cumbria."
In reaction to the news that the government is calling in the
planning application for a new deep coal mine in Cumbria,
Greenpeace UK's chief scientist, Doug Parr,
said:
“It should never have taken this long for the coal mine to be
called in – the case for it was untenable from the start. But
this is certainly fantastic news and definitely better late than
never. The government may have just about saved its blushes, so
long as the mine is canned. But with plans still to expand
airports and a green homes programme left in ruins, there’s a
long way to go before can truly have the full credibility required of a man
hosting vital climate talks later this year.”
