UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has promised to triple the amount of solar power in the country by 2030, besides doubling onshore wind and quadrupling offshore wind. The Labour government has serious plans for the energy sector and climate action.
Speaking on Saturday night, Miliband announced plans to “unleash a UK solar rooftop revolution”, in order to help people provide their own electricity, cut their energy bills and at the same time help fight the raging climate crisis.
Essentially, the Labour is looking to see solar panels fitted to millions more homes in the UK. The energy secretary has also approved three massive solar farms in the east of England. The decision is controversial as the project had been blocked by previous Tory ministers.
Miliband’s rapid moves on solar energy appreciated
Before the king’s speech on July 17, ministers are working with the building industry to make it easier to purchase homes with solar panels installed or install them on existing ones. At present, there are restrictions on where and how high up on buildings panels can be placed.
Miliband’s rapid moves on solar power have been appreciated by energy experts as they seek rectification of a huge imbalance in the use of renewable energy in Britain. In one of his first acts, Miliband recently lifted the Tories’ de facto ban on the building of new onshore windfarms.
But Tory MP for Rutland and Stamford, Alicia Kearns, said the energy secretary’s decision to give the go-ahead to the Mallard Pass solar farm has “utterly appalled” her. The other solar farms approved are the Gate Burton and Sunnica farms.
“My government is serious about delivering the stability”
Experts have stressed the need for the opening of solar farms to be accompanied by improvements in the transmission and distribution of electricity as the demand for more energy is bound to go up as more and more sections of society get electrified.
The three farms approved by the Labour government will have a capacity of around 1.35 gigawatts – almost 10% of current capacity, said Hamish Beath, an energy consultant at Imperial College London, reported the Guardian.
“From energy, to planning, to unbreakable fiscal rules, my government is serious about delivering the stability that is going to turbocharge growth that will create wealth in every corner of the UK,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently noted.
READ MORE : Ambani Extravaganza: When Luxury Collides with Environmental Responsibility
