The UK offshore wind industry has welcomed Labour’s pledge to remove barriers to reach 60GW by 2030, supporting 120,000 jobs.
RenewableUK has welcomed commitments made in a speech today by the Labour MP and Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero, Ed Miliband, at the Global Offshore Wind 2023 conference and exhibition in London.
During his keynote address to industry leaders, Miliband said: “Governments need a North Star to guide their decisions and that of investors.
“Ours is to decarbonise our electricity system by 2030.
“That means more than quadrupling offshore wind to 55GW offshore fixed and another 5GW floating by 2030.
“It will mean lower bills, more jobs, energy security, and climate leadership.
He added: “We know that we have a big task ahead to turn the surge in renewable power into a jobs surge for Britain, and that’s why we believe an active industrial policy is so necessary.
“It means us as Government making investments that private sector companies on their own won’t necessarily make – the obvious example of this is investment in our ports.
“We must also plan for the skilled workforce we need…so that people can see jobs in their communities being delivered, just as we see clean power being delivered, and the jobs in your industry are a byword for good, well-paid skilled workers.”
Responding to Miliband’s speech, RenewableUK’s CEO Dan McGrail welcomed Labour’s commitments to set ambitious targets for offshore wind and to remove longstanding barriers.
McGrail said: “We have already seen that the UK can land major investments in offshore wind manufacturing, creating thousands of jobs across the country.
“But with other countries now competing with us for future investment, we need to continue to make the UK a competitive place to locate.
“That’s why I’m pleased to see Labour outlining a number of policies focused on increasing investment in our supply chain, and that Ed Miliband is proactively engaging with industry leaders to discuss how to deliver the 120,000 jobs which could come by 2030 as a result of their offshore wind ambitions.”