Labour’s election victory gives them a clear mandate to deliver their clean energy mission, says industry body RenewableUK.
“Labour’s resounding election victory gives them a clear mandate to deliver their clean energy mission, and we look forward to working closely with the new government to speed up the pace of renewable energy development, with a focus on maximising the industrial and job opportunities the sector offers the UK,” said its chief executive Dan McGrail.
He added: “There are a number of actions we’d encourage Labour to take in the coming weeks to make clear they intend to deliver that mission.
Most notably, lifting the effective ban on onshore wind in England and increasing the budget for this year’s Contracts for Difference auction to enable new wind, solar and tidal clean energy projects to go ahead.
“By increasing the budget as one of its first key actions in office, the new government can make a crucial intervention to unlock billions of pounds of investment in renewable energy projects, lowering bills for consumers, enhancing our energy security, and boosting UK supply chains and high-quality jobs across the country.”
North of the border, Scottish Renewables was also quick to call for the new government to act quickly on driving green sector growth.
“As we welcome the new UK government, Scotland’s renewable energy industry stands ready to play our part in a new era of collaboration and delivery,” said its chief executive Claire Mack.
She added: “The time to secure our clean energy future is now. Maximising the enormous socio-economic potential of our renewable energy resources calls on the UK Government working in partnership with industry and the Scottish government.
“This means delivering a coherent policy environment that says to investors and our supply chain that Scotland is the best place in the world to build the renewables projects that will deliver cleaner, cheaper and more secure energy.
“Scottish Renewables looks forward to working closely with the new UK government on their clear mandate to unleash our full clean energy potential in the crucial years ahead.”
Meanwhile, management consultancy LCP Delta said the new Labour administration must roll out a strong invesemtn plan to hit its decarbonisation targets.
“An election has been on the horizon for a while. A new government brings the benefit of providing political stability for the next few years,” said head of market insight at LCP Sam Hollister.
“The scale of ambition we are seeing from Labour when it comes to the energy transition is necessary – we can’t take risks with the climate.
“While Labour’s accelerated targets will be a challenge, GB Energy, in particular, is an interesting proposal that can support delivery by co-investing and crowding in private sector funding.
“We need to invest £430bn in decarbonising the power sector by 2050, and the State is not going to provide that level of funding, so the £8.3bn allocated to GB Energy needs the opportunity to play a pivotal role in bringing forward private investment.
“This is not all about investment; even the additional funding and new schemes outlined in Labour’s manifesto would not be enough to reach the ambitious targets if operated in isolation. All new schemes must be carefully coordinated to maximise synergies, and additional enabling steps must be taken. Planning consent and connection agreement processes are currently hindering the delivery of renewable projects. Setting out new national policy statements will therefore be crucial in speeding up the pipeline.”