
Nigel Farage says ministers are 'defrauding' taxpayer out of billions to fund green energy - as he says water firms should be part-nationalised (at a cost of £50billion)
The Reform UK leader used a BBC interview to question why money was being used to underwrite wind and solar schemes 'for literally zero effect' on global CO2 emissions.
Mr Farage distanced himself from Reform mayor and ex-Tory MP Dame Andrea Jenkyns, who this week said she did not believe climate change existed.
But he said that even if humans were affecting the global weather system it did not justify the spending on green energy or axing high-pollution industries like steel making.
Last week Reform's Deputy leader Richard Tice wrote to firms giving them 'formal notice' that the party would axe deals aimed at offering sustainable generators protection against market volatility.
Speaking today on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Mr Farage said: 'We have got ourselves stuck in this mindset: we believe man has an influence on changing the climate, I didn't deny that, I think that man does – it is impossible to think that seven or eight billion people can't have some effect.
'But whether that is a reason to transfer manufacturing to other parts of the world, whether that is a reason to have the most expensive energy prices for industry in the world and to make the poor poorer in society, for almost o benefit whatsoever, I doubt it.'
However he also faced accusations that Reform's plan to part-nationalise UK water firms would cost taxpayers as much as £50bn.
He insisted the proposal to put 50 per cent of firms into public ownership would cost 'a lot less' than the amount estimated by Defra and regulator Ofwat, saying they were 'part of the problem'.
But despite repeated questions he could not put a figure on how much Reform's plan would cost, saying it 'depends what deal you do with the private sector investors'.
He added: 'We don't know what negotiations we're going to have, but it doesn't need to be a big sum of money if you incentivise private capital to come in and do the job properly.'
It came after Environment Secretary Steve Reed again ruled out the possibility of nationalising the water industry, saying it would cost too much and take years during which pollution would get worse.
He told Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: '(Full) nationalisation would cost upwards of £100 billion that we'd have to take away from the National Health Service and schools to give to the owners of the companies that are polluted.'
He added: 'If we try to unpick the current model of ownership, it would take years, and during that period, pollution would get worse because the companies wouldn't invest knowing that they were going to be nationalised.
'So instead of me sitting here telling the public that we're going to halve sewage pollution over the next five years, I would instead be sitting here saying we're going to play around with ownership and pollution will get far worse.'
Mr Tice wrote to energy companies urging them not to invest in the latest round of green energy contracts, known as Allocation Round 7 (AR7).
Mr Tice said he had put the companies on 'formal notice' that their investments were 'politically and commercially unsafe' as a future Reform government would seek to 'strike down all contracts signed under AR7'.
But he later told the BBC that Reform would not renege on contracts, only oppose any 'variation'.
Reform has made opposition to net zero a major part of its platform since the last election.
Earlier in the year Mr Tice pledged to 'wage war' on the policy while Greater Lincolnshire mayor Dame Andrea told Times Radio on Thursday she did not believe climate change was real.
In a report published last week, the OBR estimated tackling climate change would cost the Government £30 billion a year, largely in lost income from taxes such as fuel duty.
But it also warned that failing to act presented a 'more significant fiscal cost' because of damage caused by climate change.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Independent
a minute ago
- The Independent
Marks & Spencer advert with ‘unhealthily thin' model banned
An advert for Marks & Spencer has been banned for featuring a model who looked 'unhealthily thin'. The UK advertising watchdog concluded that it was 'irresponsible' for the retailer to use the image to advertise clothes on its mobile app. The Advertising Standards Authority said the model, who was wearing slim-fit trousers and a white top, 'appeared thin and she wore large pointed shoes which emphasised the slenderness of her legs'. Camera angles used also made the model's head appear out of proportion and 'highlighted her small frame', the ruling added. 'Therefore, we considered that the pose of the model and the choice of clothing meant the ad gave the impression that the model was unhealthily thin,' the ASA said. The retailer apologised for any offence caused and removed the image. An M&S spokeswoman said: 'Our womenswear sizing ranges from size 8 to 24 and we always want to reflect that in our advertising. 'The product images on our website feature models of varying sizes so we can appeal to all our customers, however following the ASA guidance, we have removed this particular image from our website and apologise for any offence caused.' Three more images were reported to the ASA by consumers, but the watchdog said there was no breach and did not ban them.


Daily Mail
2 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Lidl poised to overtake Morrisons as UK's fifth largest supermarket
Lidl looks set to overtake Morrisons as the UK's fifth- largest supermarket after its market share hit a record high this summer. More than half a million new customers flocked to the discount retailer's 960 stores amid concerns over higher grocery bills. Lidl is now hot on the heels of Morrisons after its slice of the market hit 8.3 per cent over the three months to July 13, according to industry research group Worldpanel. Lidl sales over the period were 11.1 per cent higher than a year earlier when its share of the market was 7.8 per cent. The surge saw it further narrow the gap with rival Morrisons, whose market share has fallen from 8.7 per cent to 8.4 per cent in the past year, the report showed. Morrisons has already lost its position as the fourth-biggest grocer in Britain to Aldi . Nearly two thirds of households told Worldpanel they are very concerned about the cost of their grocery shopping. Price increases on key goods including cocoa and beef have ramped up pressure on supermarket chains locked in a bitter battle to retain shoppers. Morrisons' slip comes as boss Rami Baitieh attempts to engineer a recovery at the private-equity owned group. Last month, he said it had 'bounced back' after its technology supplier Blue Yonder was hit by hackers in November, throwing its stock systems into disarray. Morrisons has lost sales and market share to cheaper rivals since its takeover by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) in a debt-fuelled £7billion deal in October 2021. After Labour piled on costs for retailers at the Budget last year, Morrisons cut more than 350 jobs across its cafes, convenience stores, florists and fresh food counters, in March. The figures also underscored the woes facing Britain's third-largest grocer, Asda. The firm, also owned by private equity, saw sales plunge 3 per cent from £4.4billion to £4.25billion over the past three months, while its market share fell to 11.8 per cent. The dire performance came after executive chairman Allan Leighton insisted the 'green shoots' of recovery are appearing as it slashes the price of thousands of products and improves stock levels. A spokesman for Lidl said the record market share was 'a clear signal that shoppers are voting with their feet. 'This milestone reflects our long-standing position as the fastest-growing bricks-and-mortar supermarket in the UK, as well as our commitment to offering high quality, affordable produce – which is why we've attracted more than half a million new customers.' Meanwhile, Tesco improved its share to 28.3 per cent as sales grew by 7.1 per cent, the fastest rate since December 2023. And Britain's number two supermarket Sainsbury's saw sales climb by 5.3 per cent, putting its market share at 15.1 per cent.


Daily Mail
2 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Informa slumps to £254m loss as dollar and US tech spin-off weigh
Informa shares jumped on Wednesday despite the publisher and events organiser slumping to a loss after shouldering a major impairment over the first half. The FTSE 100 firm, which owns academic publisher Taylor & Francis, posted a statutory pre-tax loss of £254.2million, compared to a £237.4million profit over the same period last year. Informa faced a £484.2million non-cash impairment related to its TechTarget business, which was spun-off and listed in the US late last year. The marketing business has seen its share price slump 70 per cent since its December IPO, meaning its market capitalisation has fallen below its net assets and resulting in the impairment TechTarget saw a 4.3 per cent decline in underlying revenues during the first half, which Informa blamed on a 'subdued market backdrop'. Its tech customers are prioritising 'AI-related research and development over investment in product marketing and sales support', according to Informa. But the wider Informa business still saw bumper reported revenue growth of 20.1 per cent to just over £2billlion over the period, as it benefited from new product lines as well as strong growth in live business-to-business events and academic markets. And Informa expects momentum to be maintained as it upgraded it full-year underlying revenue growth guidance from around 5 per cent to more than 6 per cent, helped by growth of more than 8 per cent in live business to business events. The upgrade comes despite further weakening of the US dollar, which has fallen roughly 7.6 per cent since the start of 2025. Informa claims that every cent movement in the dollar impacts its revenues by around £18million and adjusted operating profit by roughly £7million on a full year basis. The group also revealed a fresh £150million share buyback programme for the second half, after buying £200million back at an average price of 757p during the first. Boss Stephen A. Carter sad: 'Informa is further increasing the pace of performance, delivering 20 per cent+ growth in our four key performance measures: revenues, profits, earnings and free cash flow. 'Informa is built around world class brands, leading International market positions, first party data and, most importantly, colleagues with specialist expertise and a passion to deliver for customers.' Informa shares were up 5.7 per cent to 873.4p in early trading, bringing 2025 gains to around 8 per cent.