Claire Coutinho MP, Shadow Energy Secretary, said: “Ed Miliband’s obsession with climate targets means he’s making our energy unreliable and expensive. No country in the world relies just on the wind and the sun. He is shutting down the North Sea, concreting our gas wells and he’s downgraded our plans for nuclear. All this means is that families’ energy bills are going to go through the roof, and we’ll just end up importing more from coal-powered China.
“The US security services have already warned us that Chinese wind turbines could pose serious risks to our national security, but he won’t do a China audit. Ed wants to hit net zero targets no matter the cost to the British public.”
As part of the plan, the Government set out 40 actions for ministers and industry to take to hit the 2030 onshore wind ambitions.
These include planning reforms, building supply chains and skilled workforces, resolving issues over how onshore turbines and aerospace infrastructure can co-exist, repowering old turbines, and exploring plans to expand the clean industry bonus for onshore wind.
In the foreword of the strategy, Mr Miliband said: “As one of the cheapest and fastest-to-build sources of power we have, onshore wind will play a critical role in boosting our energy independence with clean power by 2030.
“The reality is that every turbine we build helps protect families, businesses and the public finances from future fossil fuel shocks.”
Last year, Labour axed the de facto ban on building onshore wind farms introduced by the Conservatives under David Cameron.
The Government’s move put onshore wind on an equal planning footing to offshore wind and nuclear, paving the way for projects to be rolled out faster in the coming years.