MediaCommenting on the latest report from the Climate Change Committee, Sam Richards, founder and campaign director for pro-growth campaign group Britain Remade, said:
“This report should be a wake-up call for everyone in Government. Not delivering the clean energy infrastructure we need to decarbonise our economy means higher bills, for longer, for millions of people across the country.
“Britain could be a clean energy superpower with an abundance of clean secure domestic energy. But as the Climate Change Committee points out, this cannot be delivered without fundamental reform to our outdated planning system.
“The work that Britain Remade has done over the last year has shown we could be energy secure by 2030 but only if the Government acts now.
“They should start by dropping the ban on new onshore wind farms in England, unlocking one of the cheapest forms of energy now available. Onshore wind is extremely popular with 67% of people supporting the installation of new turbines in their local area.
“Ministers should take action to slash the time it takes to build new offshore wind farms. Currently it can take up to 13 years for a new offshore wind farm to go from idea to generating clean electricity, despite building the actual turbines only take two to three years. And they should slash the red tape holding back the new grid connections that will make us all better off.
“Every day the Government remains asleep at the wheel is another day condemning people to paying more for their energy bills.”