Deniers can’t deny cost of green energy

DEAR Editor, In April 2022 the UK government proposed a target for achieving 95% low carbon electricity generation by 2030. Liz Truss’s government appears to be risking this target with a lifting of the ban on fracking and the granting of more North Sea oil and gas licences. Regarding the latter, Lord Deben, former Conservative Environment Secretary and now Chair of the Committee on Climate Change said: ‘Any increase in UK extraction of oil and gas would have, at most, a marginal effect on prices faced by UK consumers in future.’

This is in contrast to the present Labour party policy announced at the recent party conference, which has a more ambitious target and is coupled with a massive push on home insulation.

That plan calls for 99% of clean power by 2030, consisting of 71% wind and solar, with the rest nuclear, green hydrogen and other renewables, leaving only about 1% of electricity to be powered by gas. Electricity from onshore wind is now 6 times less expensive than that from gas fired power stations. Not only is this policy good for the environment, good for UK jobs, good for growth and good for energy security but it is predicted to save the UK £93billion. The policy also entails a publicly owned energy company thus minimising even further costs to the consumer.

Following a recent study by the Oxford Martin School of Oxford University, Professor Doyne Farmer stated ‘There is a pervasive misconception that switching to clean, green energy will be painful, costly and mean sacrifices for us all – but that’s just wrong. Our central conclusion is that we should go full speed ahead with the green energy transition because it’s going to save us money. Even if you’re a climate denier, you should be on board with what we’re advocating.’

So it looks like we can have a clean, green and less costly future but sadly it seems, not with this government.

Mike Baldwin, by email