Triumph mixed with relief as controversial scheme rejected by business secretary
Politicians and residents celebrate victory but disappointed Aquind say they are considering mounting a legal challenge
THE decision to turn down a £1.2bn electricity interconnector cable – which would have seen swathes of Portsmouth dug up – has united people and political parties across the city.
The cross-Channel scheme proposed by Aquind has been rejected by the government’s business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng.
Over the past four-anda-half years it has sparked widespread community opposition as it would have seen large stretches of Portsmouth dug up.
The cables would have been landed at Eastney, and then routed up the eastern side of Portsea Island – leading to disruption to the Eastern Road for years – finally going into an interconnector that would have been at Lovedean on the edge of the South Downs National Park.
Alexander Temerko, a British citizen who was born in the former Soviet Union, has donated more than £1m to the Tories and is listed as a director of Aquind Limited.
A letter published on the Planning Inspectorate website showed Mr Kwarteng decided to ‘refuse development consent’ having considered his obligations under the energy National Policy Statement.
Mr Kwarteng was said not to be satisfied that ‘appropriate alternatives to the proposed route’ had been sufficiently considered.
Portsmouth politicians from all parties opposed the plan, as did The News – which lodged a formal objection to the government’s decisionmaking process – as well as the vocal and organised Let’s Stop Aquind group which demonstrated and campaigned against the scheme.
Penny Mordaunt, Portsmouth North MP, said: ‘We did it. When we work together we can achieve anything, despite the odds against us. The Secretary of State’s judgement shows that the need for this scheme is outweighed by the harm it would do.
‘Well done Portsmouth and all who helped us in this. Very proud of you all.’
Stephen Morgan, Portsmouth South MP, added: ‘The government have finally seen sense and stopped the disastrous Aquind project.
‘This is a victory for the people of Portsmouth over years of uncertainty and Tory cronyism.
‘I pay tribute to local campaigners who have helped me lead our city’s united opposition. Without our efforts, this would not have been possible. Together, we have stopped Aquind.’
Portsmouth City Council leader Gerald Vernon-Jackson said: ‘Britain hasn’t built enough generating capacity which means, at times, we don’t produce enough electricity and are having to import.
‘So there’s definitely logic in looking at ways of supplying the grid when other countries are producing an excess.
‘The issue is the route. It just makes no sense routing all this through the second most densely populated city in the country. It’s stupid.
‘There’s been political unanimity on this and that campaigning has proven really effective.’
The Portsmouth Liberal Democrat group also issued a statement saying: ‘We are delighted with the news that the Aquind Interconnector application has finally been rejected by the Minister.
‘Portsmouth Liberal Democrats opposed the Aquind plans from the very beginning and started the campaign to stop Aquind when our city councillors pushed for Portsmouth City Council to actively oppose this project.
‘Our concerns were based on environmental issues, including the traffic chaos that would have lasted for years in the city, as well as national security grounds.
‘It was great to see a community campaign galvanise the strength of local feeling and also that the city MPs joined in in opposing this project.
‘It’s a real example of the people of Portsmouth coming together to benefit the city and cross-party working.’
The cables would have run through part of Havant borough, and its council was also opposed to the plan.
Council leader Alex Rennie said: ‘I’m delighted to see that the government have acknowledged the concerns raised by local authorities such as Havant Borough Council, industry and residents alike.
‘We respect the need for investment in energy infrastructure but it doesn’t come at any cost.
‘We thank the government for understa n d - ing the value we place in our unique coastline and recognising the pronounced negative effect devel- opment would’ve had on local residents and businesses in the borough.
‘The government has listened to our concerns we raised as a council about the route and clearly residents will be pleased that the government has listened.’
County councillor Patricia Stallard said: ‘In addition to being the county councillor, I’ve lived in the village of Denmead for over 40 years. I’ve seen the village grow quite considerably during that time.
‘Clearly, as we get more and more people we’re going to need more energy supplies, especially with the increasing number of people accessing online facilities.
‘The principle of Aquind is something which is welcomed, but I am concerned about two things. I’m concerned about the planned route – if it is granted it will have considerable upheaval for many years across our highway system.
‘The highway roadworks which will have to take place will be very deep and extensive, and this isn’t even to mention the inconvenience to business and commerce.
‘The other thing that concerns me is that I would
h tate wholeheartin edly the hands of another nation who might choose to cut off our supply for whatever reason, if there were ever some acrimonious discourse between the countries.
‘I feel very uneasy about being at the mercy of another country – but I do accept that we are a country that is relying more and more on our electrical devices – we can’t bury our heads in the sand.’
Chairman of Horndean Parish Council, Cllr Lyn Evans, said: ‘I was quite surprised by it, I thought it would be given permission. Lots and lots of people are very happy.
‘It would have caused huge disruption that everyone was concerned about including the parish council.
‘We would have suffered from the route of the construction traffic – it will be a great relief to a lot of people.’
The scheme caused controversy in Westminster. Berwick-upon-Tweed MP Anne-Marie Trevelyan, now the International Trade Secretary, removed herself from the process in July over funding received by Northumberland Conservatives. In 2020, Mr Temerko told MPs that Russian-linked businessmen had ‘zero’ political influence.
His remarks came amid concerns about the influence of Russian-linked oligarchs in the highest echelons of British business and politics.
Britain already has several cables which connect it to its European neighbours, allowing it to buy and sell electricity from and to the continent. These include IFA2, which lands at Daedalus on Lee-onthe-Solent.
Two of the cables already run to France and largely import French nuclear power when Britain needs it.
There are another four cables, one to the Netherlands, one to Belgium, one to Northern Ireland and one to the Republic of Ireland.
Between them they have a capacity of six gigawatts, enough to power around six million homes.
On Wednesday they supplied 6.2 per cent of the UK’s electricity needs, according to figures from National Grid. Cables to Norway and Denmark are also being developed.
Well done Portsmouth and all who helped us in this. Very proud of you all Penny Mordaunt, MP
It was November 2017 when The News first reported a plan to run an electricity cable across the Channel, land it at Eastney and take the cables north to Lovedean. The proposal made the front page, but at that stage there was no anger about it – it was more an interesting idea that would see Portsmouth have a hosting role in the country’s energy supply.
Prominent councillors said they’d been told there wouldn’t be much disruption as the cabling would use ‘existing routes’.
Fast-forward three months, though, and it was a different story. After a briefing by Aquind planners, senior politicians in Portsmouth were spitting feathers.
Then-leader Donna Jones rubbished the scheme as ‘pie in the sky’ and said it would cause unacceptable chaos, and from there on in, Aquind’s name has been mud in Portsmouth.
There was the time when it sent letters to people’s homes and asked such invasive questions that it left many in fear that a compulsory purchase order was coming.
The plans themselves caused horror when residents realised just how long the disruption would last, and how much of the east side of the city would need to be dug up. And that’s before we get to the issues of whether the UK as a whole wants a large chunk of its energy supply to be controlled by a foreign-owned firm, and dependent on France.
The arguments against the
Aquind plan were legion, and The News joined hundreds of local people in submitting an official letter of objection to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. We made the arguments in our own name, and just as importantly were happy to act as a platform for the admirable Let’s Stop Aquind group which again and again rallied community support, and kept the Aquind question prominent with marches, demonstrations, petitions, leaflet drops and an active Facebook group.
Now we’re delighted by Kwasi Kwarteng’s decision, though we await news of any appeal by Aquind.
We sincerely hope it takes note of the arguments advanced by the Portsmouth coalition of residents, politicians and media, and decides to cut its losses.
The question of energy supply is one thing; but don’t dig up a city to secure it, particularly a city as bloody-minded and determined as Portsmouth.