New Moray wind farm will get UK 'off the fossil fuel rollercoaster'
The development also included building the largest turbines in British waters, with some of the 60 structures rising up to 257 metres above sea level.
Mr Miliband said the wind farm will contribute to the UK 'getting off the fossil fuel rollercoaster' in the coming years as the UK Government aims to increase offshore wind outputs to between 43 and 50 gigawatts.
Scottish Secretary Ian Murray will visit the development – 13 miles off the coast of Buckie – to power it up on Thursday.
'Offshore wind is the backbone of our plans for clean power by 2030, as the UK is blessed with thousands of miles of coastline,' Mr Miliband said.
Read More
Letters: Football authorities must punish clubs for the behaviour of their fans
'Developments like Moray West take us a step closer to getting off the fossil fuel rollercoaster and help deliver on our Plan for Change, protecting households from volatile gas prices and creating good jobs.'
The Scottish Secretary added: 'It will be a huge moment today when I switch on full power for the Moray West wind farm.
'Investment like that being made by Ocean Winds is absolutely central to ensuring that Scotland and its workers benefit from the skilled jobs and economic growth that clean energy can bring.
'With Great British Energy located in Aberdeen, and billions of pounds of investment on the table, Scotland is at the very heart of the UK Government's drive to make the UK a clean energy superpower.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
23 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Blow for Rachel Reeves as unemployment creeps up and wage growth slows on the eve of Chancellor's spending review
The rate of UK unemployment increased to 4.6 per cent in the three months to April, from 4.5 per cent in the three months to March, the Office for National Statistics said today. Meanwhile UK average regular earnings growth decreased to 5.2 per cent in the three months to April and was 2.1 per cent higher after taking Consumer Prices Index inflation into account. It comes ahead of Chancellor Rachel Reeves announcing the Government's latest spending review tomorrow. More to follow This graph shows the average weekly earnings annual growth rates, seasonally adjusted, from 2001 to present. The latest growth rate decreased to 5.2 per cent in the three months to April
Scotsman
an hour ago
- Scotsman
The signs from Labour are more welfare cuts in Spending Review
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (centre), Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar (right) and Ed Miliband, Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary (left), during a visit to St Fergus Gas Terminal, a clean power facility in AberdeenshirePicture: Jeff J Mitchell/PA Wire This week's UK Spending Review presents a stark choice: a continuation of Westminster austerity or a long-overdue shift toward investment in people, services and the economy. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... So far, signs from the Labour Government suggest more of the same cuts that have already failed families for over a decade. As always, it is the most vulnerable in our society who will pay the price. With household bills high and public services already stretched, now is the time for serious, compassionate action. Yet Labour has refused to rule out real-terms cuts to affordable housing, police recruitment, and local government funding. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad At the same time, the UK Government is pressing ahead with damaging welfare reforms – including proposed cuts to disability benefits, the continuation of the two-child benefit cap, and delays to anti-poverty action like the long-promised child poverty taskforce. All of this risks worsening the cost-of-living crisis and driving already struggling families into deeper hardship, especially in communities already hit hardest by past austerity measures. The SNP has laid out a clear and achievable alternative. The Chancellor must fully reverse planned welfare cuts, protect public services and unlock investment in clean energy and economic growth. In particular, Labour must finally deliver full and immediate funding for Scotland's Acorn carbon capture project – a vital climate initiative that has faced years of Westminster delay. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The UK Government must also fully cover the cost of its increase to employer National Insurance, which threatens to drain frontline budgets in areas like health, social care and education. Scotland is already delivering targeted, effective support – and the evidence speaks for itself. According to new House of Commons Library research, nearly two million families across the UK would be lifted out of poverty if Labour adopted SNP policies: a UK-wide rollout of the Scottish Child Payment, scrapping the two-child cap, and ending the bedroom tax. Under the SNP, Scotland is the only part of the UK where child poverty is falling. The Scottish Child Payment alone delivers £27.15 per eligible child per week – a direct boost to family incomes that is helping to turn the tide on child poverty across our communities. By contrast, the UK Government's own impact assessment shows that proposed cuts to disability benefits could push a further 250,000 people – including 50,000 children – into poverty. Families affected stand to lose £4500 a year on average. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad And despite repeated calls from campaigners, Labour MPs have failed to back even basic reforms, like abolishing the two-child limit, voting against it in the House of Commons just last year – a decision that remains indefensible in the face of rising need. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has made clear that, without new revenue, the UK Government's current fiscal rules mean public spending will fall in real terms across most departments. That includes justice, local government and housing – all critical areas already under severe strain. If the Chancellor refuses to invest and clings to outdated austerity thinking, the consequences will be felt in every community across the UK for years to come. In Scotland, the SNP is focused on lifting people out of poverty and building a fairer, greener, more resilient economy. But we cannot shield families indefinitely from the consequences of Westminster choices. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Labour must use this Spending Review to deliver the funding and flexibility Scotland needs – not double down on the failed cuts that brought us here in the first place. MSP for Edinburgh Central and Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Secretary
Rhyl Journal
an hour ago
- Rhyl Journal
UK has one of ‘worst statutory leave offers for fathers in developed world'
In a new report, the House of Commons committee said a maximum of two weeks' paternity leave is 'completely out of step with how most couples want to share their parenting responsibilities' and 'entrenches outdated gender stereotypes about caring'. The committee has urged the Government to either amend the Employment Rights Bill to legislate for a day one right to paid leave or commit to 'considering this vital change within its review' in consultation with employers. It has also called on the Government to consider raising paternity pay to the level of maternity pay in the first six weeks – 90% of average earnings. The paternity and shared parental leave report by the committee said working parents 'will be let down by a review that leads only to tinkering around the edges of the system'. Chairwoman of the Women and Equalities Committee Sarah Owen said the UK's parental leave system was in 'urgent need of an overhaul to fit with the reality of working parents' lives'. The Labour MP for Luton North said reform 'must start with longer and better paid paternity leave'. Ms Owen said: 'It's essential the Government's proposed review addresses the system's fundamental failings, including low statutory pay, inadequate leave periods for fathers and others, exclusion of many working parents and guardians, plus design flaws and unnecessary complexity in the Shared Parental Leave scheme. 'The UK's parental leave system has fallen far behind most comparable countries, and we now have one of the worst statutory leave offers for fathers and other parents in the developed world.' The Labour MP added: 'Ministers must commit to meaningful reforms in the medium-term, with a view to going further towards a more gender equal parental leave system. 'Tinkering around the edges of a broken system will let down working parents. While much-needed substantial change to our paid parental leave system will require considerable financial investment, this would be outweighed by wider societal and economic benefits.' The report states that the UK's rate of statutory parental pay is 'completely out of kilter with the cost of living, has not kept pace with inflation and is far below rates in most comparable countries'. It recommends phased introduction of increases to statutory pay across the system to bring rates for all working parents up to 80% or more of average earnings or the real Living Wage. The lack of provision for self-employed fathers is 'deeply unfair', the report adds. The committee recommends that the Government consider options for providing statutory paid leave for all self-employed working fathers as part of its review of the parental leave system, including introducing a paternity allowance for self-employed fathers and other parents, similar to maternity allowance. The report states that the shared parental leave system is 'extremely difficult for most parents and their employers to understand'. It said a forthcoming review must examine the function and necessity of eligibility rules, with a view to 'simplifying or removing the employment status, time in service and earnings criteria'. The committee said the review should examine approaches taken in overseas systems, including the German 'partnership bonus' and Portugal's 'sharing bonus', which provide additional paid leave to couples in which both parents take a substantial portion of leave while the other returns to paid work.
