Reform tells energy firms it would scrap their clean power subsidies
The Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme sees developers guaranteed a fixed price for electricity – independent of the wholesale price – in the hope of encouraging companies to invest in renewable projects.
In a letter on Wednesday, Mr Tice claimed 'there is no public mandate for the real-world consequences' of the net zero agenda, which the contracts are a 'key part of'.
The Reform UK MP said energy companies had been given 'formal notice' of the party's plans (Gareth Fuller/PA)
If Reform won an election, he said 'we will seek to strike down all contracts signed under AR7' – the latest allocation round for CfDs.
'Let me be clear: if you enter bids in AR7, you do so at your own risk. The political consensus that has sheltered your industry for nearly two decades is fracturing.'
Climate analysts said the move would drive away investment and put British jobs in jeopardy.
The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) said: 'Polling shows the public see clean energy as the number one growth sector for the UK.
'Arguing against British renewables is arguing for more foreign gas, which will increasingly come from abroad as the North Sea continues its inevitable decline – a geological fact.
'Ripping up long-term policies and changing agreed contracts is likely to destroy the UK's credibility as a solid place to invest and with it, leave us more reliant on gas from abroad whose price we have no significant control over.'
Labour said the letter showed Reform was 'actively trying to discourage businesses from investing in clean energy in the UK – leaving bills higher for families, threatening hundreds of thousands of good jobs across the country and putting our energy security at risk.'
'They are disgracefully trying to undermine the UK's national interest,' a party spokesman said.
Mr Tice's letter followed a Government decision to allow offshore wind farms to be able to apply for the energy contracts while they are still waiting for full planning consent in a bid to hasten development.
Officials have said changes to the scheme will include increasing the length of contracts from 15 years to 20 years for offshore wind, onshore wind and solar projects.
The letter also came shortly after Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said greater use of CfDs would cut bills for households by breaking the link between electricity costs and the price of gas.
He said: 'We're all paying that higher gas price in our bills, even though most of the energy we're using comes from much cheaper, renewable sources.'
Sir Ed also accused Reform leader Nigel Farage of peddling 'myths' about net zero and vowing to challenge 'snake oil sales' with 'thought through' policy.
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North Wales Live
27 minutes ago
- North Wales Live
Readers call for by-election after councillors defect to Reform
The recent switch by Llandudno councillors from the Conservative Party to Reform UK has seen some intense discussion among North Wales Live readers, with a flurry of social media and online commentary. This political shift is seen by some as indicative of broader transformations within local and national political landscapes. Two Conwy councillors have crossed the floor to join Reform UK, leaving the Conservatives behind. Llandudno representatives Louise Emery and Tom Montgomery cited their dissatisfaction with the nation's lack of progress as their reason for defecting, expressing a desire to "stand up for Britain" upon announcing their decision. Addressing the Local Democracy Reporting Service, both councillors voiced their discontent with the current state of governance. As they departed the Conservative party, they extended gratitude towards their former colleagues, while Cllr Emery levelled criticism at the previous Tory-led UK Government for being "not good enough". Cllr Emery stated: "I have resigned from the Conservative Party and joined Reform UK. I have not taken this decision lightly." She continued, emphasising her commitment to her constituents: "For the past eight years, I have worked tirelessly for the residents of the Gogarth Mostyn ward and the town of Llandudno; I am enthusiastic, and more than ever driven to deliver for residents and businesses. "But I am so frustrated at how our country is stagnating and declining. We need a shake up; we need a government that listens to its people and is prepared to stand up for Britain – its history, its place in the world, its future. "I am tired of defending the legacy of the Conservative Government – they weren't good enough. I am horrified at the first year of Labour Government. "There is only one party that can deliver the change we so desperately need and that is Reform UK." She added: "Reform have a manifesto of common-sense policies which are the only way to set this country back on course and ensure that both local and national government work as they should - for the taxpayer." Cllr Emery also referenced additional "common sense" Reform policies behind her decision. These encompassed social care overhauls, a fresh curriculum, assessments of council expenditure, employment incentives, a "reward-based benefits" structure, and immigration controls, including "halting illegal crossings". One reader, Totemlad1 simply says: "And so it starts." While Chucker writes: "More Conservatives going over. Looks like Conservatives doomed. Maybe it's an easy way out for them." Underdog_1 believes: "Sooner Reform are in, the better Britain will be and illegal immigration will reduce/stop." Dewibach replies and asks: "And how exactly will Reform stop illegal immigration?" PedroD says: "I'm worried about the state of our county (Conwy) and its lack of effective leadership." Redsheep writes: "How is it a change when most of them are ex-Conservatives - Reform are just ultra right wing Conservatives, I think its going to be a case of 'be careful what you wish for' if Reform ever get in. People read 'Reform' and think this limited company is going to change things, all they have are carbon copies of Trump policies and look how they are going down in America. "There will have to be international agreements in place with places like France first before we can send anyone anywhere and Reform have already stated if France does not comply then they would remove fishing rights, then we end up in stale mate situation that will never be resolved because Reform are too stubborn to negotiate a deal." EllVis says: "They were voted in on the policies of their party. Defection should mean resignation and a fresh election should be called. Totally unacceptable to have party in that didn't win." Dewibach comments: "It doesn't matter what label is on the tin of paint when it comes to the issue of immigration no party can resolve it without friends on the continent." Froggyfrogs writes: "Louise Emery is one of our councillors in Llandudno. Now she has defected to she should resign, because she is no longer representing the people who voted for her. I didn't vote for her as it happens, but I certainly wouldn't vote for or Farage, so we don't want the likes of her representing our town without a new election. If she wins that, fair enough, but I doubt she will." BarnettFormulaSpongers says: "Fantastic news. Reform is on course to take all councils and Senedd next year. Time for change in wales." Everyyear feels: "Disappointing and somewhat undemocratic. Although it is quite common for politicians to change parties, I feel they should do that at election time not mid-term. My reasoning is that many will have voted for the party being represented - because they do not know the person. Personally, I would never vote for the Reform Party."
Times
an hour ago
- Times
Centrica profits halve on lower gas prices as it books nuclear writedown
Lower commodity prices have halved operating profits at Centrica and forced it to book writedowns on its nuclear and gas businesses. The FTSE 100 energy group said that adjusted operating profits fell 47 per cent to £549 million in a 'challenging market'. Its British Gas supply arm was also hit by lower demand in the warm weather. Centrica booked a £123 million impairment on its stake in Britain's nuclear plants 'as a result of reduced actual and forecast power prices, along with an update to operating expenditure assumptions'. It also booked a £78 million impairment after bringing forward the estimated closure date for its Morecambe gasfield 'as a result of lower forecasted gas prices'. It has not disclosed the planned closure date. These one-off charges, which are excluded from the adjusted operating profits, contributed to Centrica recording a statutory first-half loss of £69 million, compared with a profit of £1.7 billion in the same period of 2024, although the change was primarily driven by swings in the value of derivative energy contracts as a result of accounting remeasurements. Despite the weak results, Centrica said it would pay an interim dividend of 1.83p per share, up from 1.5p per share this time last year. Shares in the company, which have risen 12 per cent over the past year, were up 1¾p, or 1.1 per cent, to 160½p at Thursday's close. Centrica is best known as the owner of British Gas, which was Britain's biggest household energy supplier until being overtaken by Octopus Energy this year. Profits at British Gas fell 15 per cent to £133 million as it took a £50 million hit from the unusually warm weather curbing demand, more than offsetting the benefits of a 1 per cent rise in customer numbers. This week Centrica confirmed a £1.3 billion investment in the Sizewell C nuclear plant due to be built in Suffolk, taking a 15 per cent equity stake. It already owns a 20 per cent stake in Britain's existing plants and profits from this business fell 52 per cent to £107 million in the first half owing to lower power prices. Profits for Spirit Energy, Centrica's North Sea business, fell 39 per cent to £150 million on lower oil and gas prices. Profits at Centrica's energy trading arm collapsed by 72 per cent to £65 million. 'Our physical gas and power trading business, which typically profits from price dislocations, has faced short-cycle volatility driven by wider geopolitics, tariff news flows and soundbites, with speculative capital disrupting fundamentals,' Centrica said. The group also owns Britain's largest gas storage site at Rough in the North Sea. Having originally shuttered the facility as uneconomic in 2017, it partly reopened it in 2022 during the energy crisis and has been lobbying the government for subsidies to fully reopen it and, in time, convert it to a £2 billion hydrogen storage facility. Rough fell to a £26 million loss in the first half of the year, compared with a £53 million profit a year earlier, and Centrica warned that it expected that 'Rough will make an adjusted operating loss towards the upper end of £50 million to £100 million this year, a situation which is not sustainable as we move into next year'. • Cold snap triggers gas injection from largest storage plant Chris O'Shea, Centrica chief executive, said it had not been refilling the site this summer as there was too little difference between summer and forecast winter prices. He said it would cut its losses as much as possible by producing the gas remaining in Rough this winter, but there would only be about 10 to 15 million cubic feet in the site to produce, about a third of the volume that was produced last winter. 'What we're not going to do is to increase our losses by putting more gas in that we'll lose money on,' he said. O'Shea said Centrica had been 'engaged in constructive talks with the UK government on Rough', describing it as 'a vital strategic asset for the country', and welcomed a promised consultation on gas storage. 'We're ready to redevelop the asset as soon as we get the right framework in place, but we can't keep this option indefinitely,' he said. 'So we're asking the government to move at speed.' The British Gas owner has called for its larger rival Octopus Energy to be barred from taking on new customers after failing to hit financial resilience targets. O'Shea said it was 'outrageous' that Ofgem had not placed such restrictions on all three companies that had fallen short of the minimum capital target that came into force at the end of March. He said it was 'criminal' that the regulator was allowing a situation that he claimed was 'increasing the chance of systemic failure in the market'. O'Shea denied his comments were 'sour grapes' after Octopus overtook British Gas as Britain's largest supplier in January and said he simply wanted regulation to be 'fair and evenly applied'. He said Octopus's accounts showed a shortfall of more than £1 billion compared with the target. Ofgem's financial resilience rules were introduced after dozens of poorly capitalised suppliers went bust in the energy crisis of 2021-22, costing households billions of pounds. Ofgem has not named the three suppliers falling short of the minimum capital target but Octopus has confirmed it is one of them and Ovo is the only large supplier to decline to answer. An Ofgem spokeswoman said: 'The financial resilience of the energy sector has improved significantly. Our financial resilience controls are clear that where a supplier is not meeting the capital target but has a credible and agreed plan in place, that is not a breach of the rules.' She said the plans did come with restrictions and it was monitoring to ensure suppliers adhered to them. An Octopus Energy spokeswoman said: 'This is yet more naked self-interest from British Gas. We fully comply with Ofgem's rules and our resilience meant we not only thrived through the energy crisis but bailed out Bulb. Thousands of British Gas customers join us every month because we're simply better.'
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Bill Clinton reportedly sent Jeffrey Epstein note for birthday album
Donald Trump apparently isn't the only president that sent a birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein. 'The biggest name in the album' was Bill Clinton, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. The ex-president's letter appeared alongside nearly 50 others, including other prominent celebrities and executives. Last week, the Journal reported that Trump had authored a 'bawdy' letter to Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 after he was arrested on federal sex-trafficking charges. The letter was included in an album Epstein's former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell compiled on the occasion of his 50th birthday in 2003. Trump has sued Rupert Murdoch, two Wall Street Journal newspaper reporters and the newspaper's publisher Dow Jones for libel and slander over the reporting. In Thursday's article, the Wall Street Journal provided additional details on the album, including names of some of the nearly 50 people who wrote to Epstein. They reportedly include billionaire investor Leon Black, fashion designer Vera Wang, billionaire media owner Mortimer Zuckerman, billionaire former Victoria's Secret owner Les Wexner, attorney Alan Dershowitz, model scout Jean-Luc Brunel and billionaire former Microsoft executive Nathan Myhrvold. It also includes the British ambassador to the United States and Labour party politician Peter Mandelson in a section titled 'friends'. Epstein's former co-workers, Alan 'Ace' Greenberg and James 'Jimmy' Cayne, who he worked with at the investment firm Bear Stearns in the 1970s, also sent letters. The New York Times confirmed the Wall Street Journal's reporting on Thursday evening. 'The professionally bound birthday book had multiple volumes and included a table of contents,' the Journal reported. According to the newspaper, Clinton's note to Epstein read: 'It's reassuring isn't it, to have lasted as long, across all the years of learning and knowing, adventures and [illegible word], and also to have your childlike curiosity, the drive to make a difference and the solace of friends.' A Clinton spokesperson declined to comment to the Journal, instead referring the paper to a previous statement from the ex-president, saying he had cut ties with Epstein more than a decade before his arrest and was not aware of Epstein's crimes. Trump's letter to Epstein was far from the only note that was sexual in nature, according to documents the Journal reviewed. It describes a poem signed by Black that read 'Blonde, Red or Brunette, spread out geographically / With this net of fish, Jeff's now 'The Old Man and The Sea'', and a note from Wexner that included 'a line drawing of what appeared to be a woman's breasts'. Spokespersons for Black and Wexner declined the Journal's request for comment. A letter from Wang suggested Epstein star on The Bachelor. Wang did not respond to the Journal's requests for comment. And a note from Myhrvold promised photographs from a recent trip to Africa: 'They seemed more appropriate than anything I could put in words.' The images included 'a monkey screaming, lions and zebras mating, and a zebra with its penis visible', the Journal reported. A spokesperson for Myhrvold told the Journal the former Microsoft executive did not recall the submission, only knew Epstein as a donor to scientific research, and that he 'regularly shares photos of and writes about animal behavior'. The letter from Mandelson 'included photos of whiskey and a tropical island', the Journal reported. Mandelson referred to Epstein as 'my best pal' in the note. A spokesperson for Mandelson declined to comment to the Journal. As for the relationship between Trump and Epstein, the Times found that at least once before, Trump had written Epstein an admiring note. 'To Jeff — You are the greatest!' reads an inscription in a copy of Trump's book Trump: the Art of the Comeback, which belonged to Epstein. The message, reviewed by the Times, is signed 'Donald' and dated 'Oct 97' – the month the book came out. The Times also reviewed a previously undisclosed photo of Trump and Epstein with the singer James Brown. It is not clear where the photo was taken. Brown frequently performed in Atlantic City, New Jersey, where Trump owned the Taj Mahal casino.
