Ministers reveal plan to nearly double onshore wind across England by 2030
Ministers want to expand the country's onshore wind capacity from 14.8GW to 27-29GW by the end of the decade.
It comes as part of wider Government ambitions to transition towards a clean power system by 2030, with the hope of boosting economic growth, creating jobs, reducing bills, decarbonising the grid and strengthening energy security.
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.
The Conservatives criticised the strategy, accusing Energy Secretary Ed Miliband of making the country's energy 'unreliable and expensive' through his 'obsession with climate targets'.
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.
The Government claimed the strategy will support the creation of up to 45,000 skilled jobs by the end of the decade.
In the foreword, 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.'
'The reality is that every turbine we build helps protect families, businesses and the public finances from future fossil fuel shocks.'
Matthieu Hue, co-chairman of the Onshore Wind Taskforce and chief executive of EDF Power Solutions UK and Ireland, said: 'This strategy is focusing on overcoming barriers and challenges we face across the industry in the deployment of onshore wind while capturing the major socio-economic benefits it can bring to the environment and to local economies.
'This is a critical part of making Britain a clean energy superpower and delivering energy security.'
The Government said communities that host wind farms will benefit from money for community initiatives, such as new football pitches or libraries, or even bill discount schemes.
A typical 25MW wind farm paying the industry standard of £5,000 per MW of installed capacity per year could deliver £3.75 million of funding to be redistributed among the community on local initiatives of their choosing over a 30-year operating life, according to the strategy document.
In a statement, shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho said: '(The Energy Secretary) 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.'
Elsewhere, the Government recently completed a process to de-risk offshore wind developments, led by the Marine Spatial Prioritisation Programme.
It said this will inform the Crown Estate's marine delivery route map on strategic use of the seabed so that more offshore wind farms can be built in a way that considers all marine sectors, including fisheries, and protects the environment.
James Robottom, RenewableUK's head of onshore wind delivery, said: 'Overturning the unpopular onshore wind ban, which deprived us of one of the quickest and cheapest technologies to build for a decade, was just the start.
'The hard work to make the most of this great opportunity to grow our economy and strengthen the UK's energy security is now in full swing.'
Sue Ferns, senior deputy general secretary of trade union Prospect, said: 'The lost years resulting from the last government's inexplicable ban have resulted in significant workforce and skills-related challenges that urgently need to be addressed, which hopefully they will be in the forthcoming clean energy workforce plan.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
38 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Domesday Book village is up in arms as new owner of £585,000 historic cottage applies to bulldoze it in favour of 'modern, bland new-build' homes
Villagers are up in arms after the new owner of a £585,000 historic cottage applied to bulldoze it to make way for new-build homes. Eric Abbott has also hit out at new owners of the property he lived in for more than 60 years after claiming they only sold it on the condition that it would be lived in by a family. Almost a thousand people have now signed a petition to stop the development in Swanmore, Hampshire, and 200 objections were written during the public consultation period for the plans. New owner Simon Smith has submitted an application to Winchester City Council to demolish the house and build two two-storey modern houses with four bedrooms each, parking for three cars and gardens. Neighbours think that the new build won't fit in well with the character of the village, and will cause traffic problems on an already busy street which is around the corner from a primary school. Houses on the street cost an average of £800,000, and some buildings in Swanmore - which is mentioned in the Domesday Book - date back to the 16th or early 17th centuries. Villagers received flyers about the petition against the redevelopment, which has 931 signatures, through their letterboxes. The flyers said that the cottage, known as Hiawatha, is being 'flattened' and replaced with 'two modern, bland new-builds'. Former company director Mr Abbott, 94, raised his family in the property with his wife Peggy. It was sold after being put on the market last year for £585,000. In an objection he wrote against the planning application, Mr Abbott said: 'As the previous owner of Hiawatha I was totally dismayed to see the change of heart of the new owners attempting to destroy Hiawatha and replace with totally unsuitable houses. 'I instructed the estate agent to ensure my wonderful house was only sold to a family who would love it like I did and not destroy it. 'The estate agent assured me that he had made this clear to the new owners and that they had agreed it to be their forever home which is all I ever wanted for another family to love it like I had for the last 64 years. 'It seems they lied and were buying Hiawatha for financial gain. 'I had been offered to sell to many builders and I declined as this house is part of history, it was there before Chapel Road was even made. 'I would never have sold it had I known this was their intention and they knew that. 'There is an ancient well that in the deeds demands that it should be operable for future water shortages in the village and this was a legal requirement. 'I believe Hiawatha was built in the 15th century it is a beautiful flint cottage which should not be replaced with two identical new builds. 'I feel it should remain standing and let the slow worms, birds, bats and many other species carry on living as they have been for many years. 'I strongly object and do hope that this does not go ahead it would be a great shame to the wonderful village of Swanmore.' David Hughes, 63, lives nearby and hopes he's not a 'nimby' for wanting the house to keep its character. The scientist said: 'I put in [an objection] saying I wasn't very keen on it, hopefully not from a nimby point of view. 'If we're not careful, we'll have a lot of new houses here. 'It's an unusual-looking house, it breaks up some of the monotony of the architecture.' The villager admitted that he was surprised 'how many other people were that bothered about it'. Swanmore local John Allen thinks that the council like the idea of the demolition because replacing the house with two houses will bring in more council tax. The 79 year old retiree said: 'The council like it, wouldn't it, more council tax, more money, that sort of thing.' Paraphrasing film producer Samuel Goldwyn in reference to Mr Abbott's agreement with the new owners, he said 'a verbal agreement isn't worth the paper it's written on'. 'He should've got it done legally,' he said. A middle-aged female neighbour who wanted to remain anonymous said she had signed the petition against the redevelopment. She said: 'I don't think it's the prettiest building in the village, but my main concern for it is if they put two properties in it. 'The road is already abused enough with traffic, I know there's three bedrooms [in each house].' 'As we all know, if you've got three teenagers moved in all of a sudden you haven't got enough parking.' An elderly female neighbour who also didn't want to be named said that it's 'bad' that the new owners didn't honour the agreement not to demolish the house. 'That's pretty poor, actually, I think,' she said. 'I mean, they knew what they were going to be doing with it - that doesn't seem very honest.' Ash Bennett, Mr Abbott's former neighbour, a 54 year old air traffic controller said: 'I've lived here 18, 19 years. 'I was aware when they sold the house, I didn't know until more recently about what was going to happen to it. 'I didn't follow it closely, but my understanding was that there was an agreement it wasn't going to be knocked down and developed, it would be renovated which isn't what they wanted to do. 'Personally speaking, I would rather they wouldn't knock it down.' The father of three added that the house needs 'a lot of work'. He said: 'I went in it 18 years ago, nothing much has been done to it since. 'My understanding is it would require a lot of work to it.' On the planning application, Historic England said that there is no evidence to indicate that the building predates the 19th century - it is believed to have been built between 1840 and 1868. It said: 'The building does not illustrate an important aspect of the nation's history, nor does it have the historic associations with nationally important individuals, groups, or events, which might give it historic special interest.' A decision is due to be made about the planning application on July 18.
Auto Blog
an hour ago
- Auto Blog
BMW's M Division Is Working On A "Dream Car For Collectors"
By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . You may unsubscribe from email communication at anytime. Something Should Succeed The Skytop Cast your mind back a decade to 2015, when the F82 M4 GTS was but a Pebble Beach concept. At that point, cars that cost seven figures were scarce, and Bimmers that cost six and didn't have a 7 on the back were non-existent. But nowadays, after selling every example of the – ahem – $750,000 BMW 3.0 CSL, getting several requests about the Concept Touring Coupe, and then finding resounding success with the Skytop and Speedtop, the Bavarians are poised to build on that momentum with something new, reports BMW Blog. What exactly remains to be seen, but it's described as a 'dream car' that will be 'for collectors.' It seems BMW is making hay while the sun shines. Production Crews Know It's Coming, Just Not When Source: BMW Sylvia Neubauer, Vice President of Customer, Brand, and Sales at M, reportedly told BMW Blog that BMW's small-series team had approved a limited-run M: 'We are discussing things, but we need to find the right time to do it. Be assured, we share the same dream and passion. We have been talking with Adrian van Hooydonk [Head of BMW Group Design] and the team who does the small series planning, and there is a slot reserved for BMW M.' As is typically the case with these sorts of projects, you need to build suspense. You don't hear the name of Oppenheimer, nor that it'll be shot on IMAX, before you hear that Christopher Nolan and Cillian Murphy are working on a new project. Getting the media talking about what the producers have in mind builds excitement, and in this case, it gets potential buyers calling to ask for a build slot. What To Expect, And What Not To Hope For BMW has ruled out the idea of reviving the M1 supercar. If it's to be a true supercar like the Audi R8 was (and may again be), it would need a unique chassis, or something close to it, and BMW is still a massive company built on efficiency, where economies of scale need to make sense. If this project is to be a stepping stone to building a department that could make an M1 happen, it needs to be financially viable, and there's still only so much money you can ask for an M. Thus, we can be sure that it will be based on something BMW already makes, which effectively rules out a supercar, but only for the time being, as Neubauer hints: Autoblog Newsletter Autoblog brings you car news; expert reviews and exciting pictures and video. Research and compare vehicles, too. Sign up or sign in with Google Facebook Microsoft Apple By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . You may unsubscribe from email communication at anytime. 'We always think of where there might be potential markets for the future. Many times, we are doing this together with our [BMW] AG colleagues because we need some base car to then turn it into a high-performance model. There are some ideas we are discussing with our AG colleagues at the moment.' Our best guess? BMW is still deciding what to do for its 8 Series replacement. Some rumors have suggested that the 4 Series and the 8 Series will meet in the middle to become the reborn 6 Series, which is exactly what Mercedes did with the E-Class and C-Class coupes when it came up with the CLE. Once the bean counters decide where to go, and the M division knows what it has to work with, then – and only then – will we start to hear rumblings of what is really going on. Until then, anything is possible in this market – especially when there are third parties that can do the hard work of producing a bespoke chassis. Then again, working with a third party (Lamborghini) is what burned BMW the first time it tried to enter the supercar space. Whatever the special model may be, it can't be poorly timed, and it can't be overpriced. BMW hasn't missed in a while, so fingers crossed. About the Author Sebastian Cenizo View Profile
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
'Just ignore Farage': Boris Johnson tells Tories how to counter the rise of Reform - as calls grow for former PM to lead the Conservatives once again
Boris Johnson has suggested that the best way for the Conservative Party to tackle the rise of Reform is to simply ignore them. The former prime minister, who led the Tories when the Brexit Party, now known as Reform, was polling at 'zero per cent,' believes that attacking them head-on is a waste of energy. Speaking about his time leading the Conservative Party, Mr Johnson pointed out that Reform's popularity in the polls was practically non-existent when he was in charge. He said that his approach was clear: 'My strategy with the individuals that you mention is don't talk about them.' He added: 'I think Conservatives need to focus on the economy and making life better for people and giving people opportunity. 'I think if we concentrate on the economy we mount full spectrum warfare on all the things that Starmer is doing wrong, we will win.' His advice comes after Reform's rise in the polls, with the party making a significant impact in the May local elections. Meanwhile, some Tory MPs have been calling for the former prime minister to make a dramatic return to the Commons, hoping he can evive the ailing Conservative Party. The former prime minister, who led the Tories when the Brexit Party, now known as Reform, was polling at 'zero per cent,' believes that attacking them head-on is a waste of energy Meanwhile, some Tory MPs have been calling for the former prime minister to make a dramatic return to the Commons, hoping he can evive the ailing Conservative Party Reform gained control of seven local authorities and became the largest party in three more, a stunning sweep that left Conservative strongholds in tatters. His remarks come amid growing concern in Conservative ranks about the threat from Reform, which has seen increasing support, particularly since the last general election. While the Tories lost a staggering 252 seats and only managed a 23.2 per cent vote share, Reform surged to secure five seats with 14.3 per cent of the vote. In recent months, both Sir Keir Starmer and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch have come under fire for spending too much time attacking Reform. Mrs. Badenoch, in a March interview with The Telegraph, dismissed Nigel Farage as a 'reality TV star,' suggesting that government should not be about drama. But Farage fired back, saying it was a good thing people knew who he was, comparing his TV background to Donald Trump's unconventional political rise. In May, the Prime Minister escalated his rhetoric, attacking Reform directly and calling them his main political rival. Yet, his attempt to discredit the party has only backfired. Last month, he echoed Reform's tough stance on immigration, warning that Britain could become an 'island of strangers.' His words sparked outrage among Labour MPs, and he was forced to walk back the comment, admitting regret. In May this year, Mr Johnson's allies were reportedly trying to convince him to make a bombshell return. Mrs Badenoch attempted to play down the prospect of a political return by Mr Johnson in a TV interview this morning, telling GB News: 'So, I love Boris. 'He sends me lots of messages, gives me lots of advice, like Iain Duncan Smith, like David Cameron. 'I have great people who have been in this situation before, who dealt with difficult times. So it's up to him what he wants to do. 'I have to focus on my job, which is making sure that Keir Starmer does not do more than the damage he's doing right now. 'We have to get him out in four years time, otherwise there's not going to be a country left I'm afraid.'
