Break the silence with good news
THE most deafening aspect of Budget Day yesterday was not the cheers and jeers in the House of Commons but the silence in the Chancellor’s speech and the official Red Book about the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon.
At the start of the year the independent Hendry Review gave the proposals an enthusiastic thumbsup. It is hoped the Swansea project could lead to the development of a string of lagoons which would provide clean and secure energy for many decades to come.
Philip Hammond’s speech was rich in rhetoric about the need for the UK to be on the cutting edge of science and enterprise and here is a project – once talked-up by the Government – which would establish Britain as a showcase of truly exciting technology.
Climate change means we have a moral duty to wean ourselves off fossil fuels. Instability in the Middle East and uncertainty about Russia’s future direction puts an onus on ministers to find secure sources of reliable energy.
Wales has an opportunity to show how the power of the tides can be harnessed. Of course, when the funding of NHS and social care is under immense pressure it would be irresponsible not to carry out the most thorough due diligence and ensure taxpayers and billpayers get the best possible deal, but there will be dismay if bureaucratic inertia and a fear of innovation stops a viable project becoming reality.
Greenpeace has expressed deep concern about what the Budget will mean for the future of tidal projects. It will be deeply regrettable if Britain flunks its chance to be at the forefront of the green industrial revolution.
Demand for energy will only escalate as living standards rise in what used to be called developing economies. Those who can perfect safe and dependable ways of generating electricity for millions stand to reap spectacular rewards.
Billions of phones need charged every night, and in the not too distant future it is likely millions of electric cars will also be plugged into charging points. Renewable technology has a crucial part to play in meeting the escalating demand for energy.
If Britain fails to make the most of brilliant opportunities in this area then other countries will show us what we should have done. The world is intrigued by the UK’s vote to leave the European Union but all the rhetoric about the entrepreneurial future that awaits this country will ring hollow if infrastructure projects cannot get off the ground.
Cabinet ministers have many things to think about in their rare quiet moments but champions of the lagoon are fighting hard to win the project the attention it deserves. There will be disappointment the Chancellor and the Prime Minister have not given it the goahead this week, but they would do very well to spend some time thinking hard about its impressive merits.
Wales needs the jobs, and memories of the summer’s cancellation of rail electrification to Swansea still rankle many people. It’s time to deliver on this nation’s promise.