Labour calls on new Energy Secretary to put country above party and cut energy bills and make Britain energy secure

Labour will today propose amendments to the Energy Bill that would cut energy bills by £93 billion for the British people, make Britain energy secure and end once and for all the Tories' ban on onshore wind.

In a first major test for new Energy Secretary, Claire Coutinho - the sixth Conservative in post since 2019, and the fourth to bring forward the long delayed Energy Bill - Labour will bring forward proposals that would put the UK on a path to becoming a clean energy superpower by 2030, including with an end to the ban on new onshore wind in England.

Onshore wind is one of the cheapest, quickest forms of power available, but Rishi Sunak has consistently refused to overturn the ban on new onshore wind projects that was brought in by the Conservatives in 2015. Onshore wind ban has become a totem on Tory failure on energy security. Due to the ban, Ukraine built more onshore wind turbines than England in 2022.

The only way to remove the onshore wind ban permanently is with Labour’s amendment to bring the planning rules for onshore wind in line with all forms of major infrastructure. There are serious concerns across the energy industry that, although an improvement on the current situation, the Sharma amendment does not go far enough, because it does not bring the planning rules for onshore wind in line with major infrastructure.

The Tory ban destroyed the market for onshore wind projects, with project approvals falling 97%; since 2015, only 10 onshore wind projects have been consented for development in England and only three are actually operating. There are also currently hundreds of projects waiting to go that received planning permission before the ban but are being blocked by the Tories.

Labour would reverse the ban on onshore wind, so the British people can reap the benefits of cleaner, cheaper power. 

Senior Conservatives are now actively opposing the Government's defence of the ban, with 25 Conservative MPs already supporting an amendment that would partially overturn the ban from former Energy Secretary, Alok Sharma.

Labour’s plans to expand clean power are part of Keir Starmer’s commitment to make the UK a world-leading clean energy superpower by 2030, which would cut bills by £93bn for British families. Labour will also propose an amendment to the Energy Bill to make clean power by 2030 an official government target, in a move that would boost energy security and reduce the UKs dependence on fossil fuel and the dictators who control those markets. Independent analysis has confirmed that Labour's plans would desicively reduce energy imports into the UK.

Ed Miliband MP, Labour’s Shadow Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary, said:

“This is the first major test of the new Energy Secretary. Will she persist with the Tories’ disastrous ban onshore wind, which has undermined Britain’s energy security and cost families money, or will she put country before party, stand up to her cabinet colleagues, and back homegrown clean power?

“We’ve heard countless promises from Conservatives before on removing the ban. But we cannot have half measures or false solutions.

“Only Labour can cut energy bills for good and make us energy secure, with our plan to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030, and GB Energy - our publicly-owned national champion that will produce cheap, clean power in Britain, for Britain.”

Ends

Notes to editors:

The Energy Bill:

• The Energy Bill has been stuck in Parliament since July 2022, and when it returns to the House today, it will be on its fourth Secretary of State having survived one departmental rebrand. The Climate Change Committee has found that the Government is failing on major areas of net zero delivery, including upgrading homes and boosting homegrown renewables to deliver energy security.

On onshore wind:

• The Conservative Party has already broken their promise to end their ban on onshore wind by the end of April, as new analysis from Carbon Brief has shown that the total cost of Rishi Sunak’s refusal to end the ban England and Wales is costing British households a staggering £5.1bn per year on their energy bills, equivalent to £182 per household per year.

• Onshore wind is one of the cheapest, quickest forms of power available, but Rishi Sunak has consistently refused to overturn the ban on new onshore wind projects that was brought in by the Conservatives in 2015, putting the interests of his party backbenchers before the national interest. Last September, the then Energy Secretary, Jacob Rees-Mogg, announced plans to end the ban and bring its planning regime in line with other infrastructure. 

• In December 2022, Michael Gove promised that the Conservative Government would introduce planning reform that would “enable us to move away from “overly rigid” requirements on onshore wind” by the end of April 2023, but since then, no significant action has been taken.https://twitter.com/tamcohen/status/1600228993483083792/photo/1

• This ban destroyed the market for onshore wind projects, with project approvals falling 97%; since 2015, only 10 onshore wind projects have been consented for development in England and only three are actually operating. There are also currently hundreds of projects waiting to go that received planning permission before the ban but are being blocked by the Tories.

• Labour would reverse the ban on onshore wind, so the British people can reap the benefits of cleaner, cheaper power. Labour’s plans to expand clean power are part of Keir Starmer’s commitment to make the UK a world-leading clean energy superpower by 2030, which would cut bills by £93bn for British families.