Ed Miliband unveils Labour’s five-point energy security plan

Wednesday, 9 March 2022 22:30

“Time for a green energy sprint for energy security, sovereignty and to lower bills” says Miliband as he unveils Labour’s five-point energy security plan. Labour has called for an urgent “national sprint” to build a clean, green, secure energy future that will improve the UK’s energy sovereignty and cut energy bills for working people. In the wake of sky-rocketing global gas prices after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Shadow Secretary of State of Climate...Request free trial

“Time for a green energy sprint for energy security, sovereignty and to lower bills” says Miliband as he unveils Labour’s five-point energy security plan.

Labour has called for an urgent “national sprint” to build a clean, green, secure energy future that will improve the UK’s energy sovereignty and cut energy bills for working people.

In the wake of sky-rocketing global gas prices after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Shadow Secretary of State of Climate Change and Net Zero Ed Miliband will today call on the Government to ramp up ambition on home-grown renewable and nuclear energy, as well as calling for a national home insulation programme to cut bills and cut gas imports.

Labour will argue that the Government’s decade of failure on renewables, on nuclear, and on energy efficiency has left the UK vulnerable during this crisis.

He will say: “From home energy efficiency to onshore and offshore wind, hydrogen and tidal to solar and nuclear power, it is time to turbocharge the shift to green energy. This is the safest, quickest route to national energy security. In doing so, we can create good jobs and a vibrant economic future for the whole nation.”

Labour’s plan to improve the energy efficiency of 19 million homes over a decade would cut UK gas imports by 15% and save up to £400 off the average energy bill for families.

On a visit to the University of Salford with Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, he will praise devolved administrations for leading ambitious energy efficiency programmes and call on the Government to back these schemes to create jobs and bring down bills.

Investing in clean power and energy efficiency will support good jobs in every region of the UK, crowding in investment to boost British businesses and enhance domestic supply chains.

Miliband will also say that the government looking over its shoulder at its climate sceptics has hampered the drive towards green power. He will cite the decision in 2015 to effectively ban onshore wind, the cheapest fuel available, which has meant we lost more home-grown power than the total sum of all Russian imports in the time since.

He will also underline Labour’s opposition to new fracking, pointing out that “The answer to a fossil fuel crisis is not to double down on fossil fuels with a dangerous lurch towards fracking.” He will argue that in the interest of national security and to tackle the cost of living crisis, the most secure route for the country is to go further and faster on the green transition.

To help ease the immediate hit of the energy crisis, Labour proposed back in January to use a one-off windfall tax on oil and gas producers to cut household energy costs by up to £600, including through removing VAT from energy bills.

Ed Miliband MP, Labour’s Shadow Secretary of State of Climate Change and Net Zero, said:

“Energy security is national security. Homegrown, clean power is the cheaper, more secure route to energy security and sovereignty.

“We can make ourselves safer and more secure and keep bills lower with a green sprint, including a plan to insulate millions of homes.

“The Conservatives’ decade of failure on renewables, nuclear, and energy efficiency has left us vulnerable to the global fossil fuel market. The Government said they were ‘cutting the green crap’ but it was a disaster- with bills for working families £2.5bn higher as a result.

“Business as usual, or false solutions such as fracking will not bring down bills or achieve security. Only Labour can deliver the national energy security plan we need to cut bills, safeguard our energy supply, and provide security for future generations by tackling the climate crisis.”

ENDS

Notes to editors:

Labour’s Five-Point Plan for Energy Security:

An energy efficiency revolution to insulate 19 million homes in a decade, cut gas imports by 15% and cut bills by up to £400.
Double our onshore wind capacity to 30GW by 2030, to power an extra 10 million homes^[1]
Increase offshore wind capacity to at least 75GW by 2035.
Triple solar power by 2030, back tidal power and further investment in hydrogen.
End the delay on nuclear power, confirming Sizewell C and backing SMRs.

Labour’s plan will:

- Drive down energy bills for working people;

- Deliver energy security and sovereignty for the UK;

- Support good jobs in every region of the country;

- Power our future by tackling the climate emergency.

Energy efficiency revolution

Conservative failure:

The UK has the least energy efficient housing in Europe, with 19 million homes estimated to be below EPC Band C.^[2]
Under the Conservatives, home insulation rates have plummeted. In 2013 the Coalition cut energy efficiency programmes, after which insulation rates fell by 92% in 2013.^[3] (See Graph in Annex).
Since, the Government has botched the Green Homes Grant, which has yet to be replaced.^[4]

Labour’s plan:

We will give devolved administrations the power and the resources to bring every home in their area up to EPC standard C or higher within a decade.
Labour’s national plan to upgrade 19 million homes would:

○ Save families an average of £400 a year off their energy bills^[5];

○ Cut national gas imports by up to 15%^[6];

○ Support over nearly 100,000 jobs in every region in 2022-24, including the Midlands and North^[7].

Double our onshore wind capacity

Conservative failure:

The Conservative’s effective moratorium on new onshore wind projects in 2015 effectively destroyed the market.
In 2016-2020, only 16 new turbines were granted planning permission. The rate of development fell from 87 per year 2011-2015 to just over 3 per year in 2016-2020.^[8]
The wind moratorium effectively lost the UK 5GW of energy, which if priced consistently with energy prices, would have equated to £60 per household off average bills.^[9]
That ban has cost us clean power capacity equivalent to all our Russian gas imports over the same period of time.^[10]

Labour’s plan:

Establish a clear and ambitious target to more than double the current capacity to target to 30GW of onshore capacity by 2030^[11], adding £45bn to the UK economy and creating 27,000 high quality jobs.^[12]
Bring forward planning reform in England, so that projects that are consistent with the UK’s energy needs and command local support can go ahead.

Double our offshore wind capacity

Conservative failure:

The Conservatives plan to ramp up offshore wind production to 40GW by 2030 are insufficient to meet our energy sovereignty and capacity needs.
The UK lacks ambition and investment in floating wind, which has the potential to be one of this country’s most successful exports.
Jobs in the supply chains for these industries are failing to materialise, with the Conservative and SNP Governments letting jobs be shipped overseas.

Labour’s plan:

Double the national target for offshore wind production, taking fixed offshore wind to over 60GW by 2035 and floating to at least 15GW by 2035.^[13]
End the offshoring of offshore jobs with a Buy British policy, raising the requirements for domestic content so jobs go to communities in places such as Scotland and the North East rather than overseas.

Commit to new solar, tidal, and hydrogen

Solar

Conservative failure:

In 2015, the Government disastrously slashed solar subsidies causing a huge crash in the market. In the 5 years that preceded the ban, solar went from zero capacity to 12GW (2011-16); in the 5 years after it took effect (2016-2021), only 1GW of extra capacity was installed.

Labour’s plan:

Triple our solar power with a target of 40GW by 2030 in a mix of rooftop and larger field solar.^[14]

Tidal

Conservative failure:

By building our strength as an island nation, tidal power can deliver clean power to the UK, as confirmed by the independent Hendry Review in 2016.^[15]
Yet the government rejected the recommendations of the Review and has stalled on deploying tidal technologies.^[16]

Labour’s plan:

Harness the UK’s marine power potential, by returning to the case for a tidal lagoon pathfinder project, as recommended in the Hendry Review.

Hydrogen

Conservative failure:

The UK Hydrogen Strategy set out overall Government investment at a scale considerably less than countries such as Germany and France.
Senior industrial leaders have said that the UK is falling behind other European countries in the race to secure a domestic hydrogen industry.^[17]

Labour’s plan:

Raise the ambition stated in the Hydrogen Strategy for the UK's hydrogen economy.

End the delay on nuclear power

Conservative failure:

The Conservatives have wasted a decade on nuclear power. The last Labour Government gave the go-ahead for new sites in 2009, but under the Conservatives none have yet got up and running.^[18]

Labour’s plan:

Bring forward the deadline for a Final Investment Decision on Sizewell C to the end of 2022, rather than waiting until the end of this Parliament.
Drive forward the development of Small Modular Reactors over the rest of this Parliament.

Footnotes: