The Conservatives failure on energy security is hitting British
business with industrial energy costs now the highest in Europe.
In 2021, industrial energy prices in the UK were a staggering 62
per cent higher than the international average. Despite huge
advances in renewable technology business has paid a £3.5 billion
energy premium under the Conservatives who have failed to match
Labour's record in office where industrial energy prices were
just 8% higher than the European average.
The analysis comes on the back of the government’s botched energy
relaunch this week, where the government doubled down on policies
that have undermined British industry against international
competitors and left them exposed to the whims of fossil
fuel dictators.
Labour’s plans to deliver clean energy by 2030 will boost
business. Labour will remove barriers like the Conservatives' ban
on onshore wind to expand generation capacity for clean power,
which is cheaper than electricity from fossil fuels.
Under Labour’s plan British industry would save £28 billion over
the rest of the decade, making the UK a better place to
manufacture and export from; save high street businesses over £21
billion and take almost £5 billion out of food production, which
could be passed on to consumers
Tory failure has landed British business with a £3.5 billion
energy premium compared to international counterparts, even
before the invasion of Ukraine pushed energy prices up even
further.
Their ban on onshore wind has resulted in 7GW of lost onshore
wind capacity since 2015. Conservative failure on energy has put
British business on the backfoot, resulting in significant job
losses, with 11,000 jobs lost in energy-intensive industries
since 2015.
Britain’s lack of Industrial Strategy leaves British industry
exposed as international competitors rush ahead to secure the
jobs of the future. Labour have pledged to back British business
by investing in renewable energy, hydrogen, carbon capture and
nuclear power to make Britain a clean energy superpower and
provide industry with access to secure low cost energy.
, Labour’s Shadow
Business Secretary, said:
“Every family and business in Britain has paid the price of the
Conservatives’ failed energy policy which has left Britain as the
worst hit country in Western Europe during the energy crisis.
Britain is a brilliant place to start and grow a business but
energy costs are holding firms back, impacting on investment and
pushing prices up.
“Labour has a plan to lower industrial energy costs for good,
ensuring we keep good jobs in our industrial heartlands for
decades to come. Labour’s modern Industrial Strategy will give
renewed confidence to industry that they have a government on
their side.”
Ends
Notes
In 2021, industrial users spent £9.2 billion on electricity,
according to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s
Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES): Source
According to the Department for Energy Security’s International
energy price comparison statistics, in 2021, the average
industrial electricity price in the UK was 13.05p/kWh, 62 per
cent higher than the IEA median. In 2010, the price was just
7.57p/kWh, just 8 per cent higher than the IEA median.
Had the UK price of industrial electricity been at the
international median level, industrial users would have spent
£3.5bn less on their electricity.
Under Labour’s plan British industry would save £28 billion over
the rest of the decade, making the UK a better place to
manufacture and export from; save high street businesses over £21
billion and take almost £5 billion out of food production, which
could be passed on to consumers
Labour’s energy mission Mission-Climate.pdf
(labour.org.uk)
