Sturgeon: I support policies like Labour’s public energy firm

Nicola Sturgeon has said she supports proposals like Sir Keir Starmer’s plan for a public energy firm, which the Labour leader set out earlier this week.

During First Minister’s Questions on Thursday, Anas Sarwar pressed Ms Sturgeon on her own pledge for a publicly-owned energy company.

At the Labour conference in Liverpool, Sir Keir said that if elected prime minister he would set up Great British Energy within his first year in office to “take advantage of the opportunities” in clean power in order to cut bills and generate a return for the nation.

The Scottish Labour leader asked the First Minister if she supports the plan.

She said: “I’m happy to give support to policies of that nature.

“Perhaps Anas Sarwar would want to back a situation where of course Scotland had full powers we would need over the energy market and access to borrowing that are necessary for us to establish an energy generation company of that nature.”

Mr Sarwar responded: “In 2017 the First Minister promised a Government-run energy company that would sell Scottish renewable energy to customers as close to cost price as possible, using the powers they have.

“A promise broken.

“A Labour government will establish a public energy company in year one. And after 15 years of SNP Government we’re told we still have to wait.”

He accused the First Minister of selling off rights to offshore wind generation “on the cheap”, saying Swedish company Vattenfall would profit more than Scottish taxpayers.

Ms Sturgeon said he was “talking down the fantastic ScotWind programme”.

The SNP’s plans were for a retail energy company rather than a generating one, she said.

She continued: “Yes, we committed to a publicly-owned retail energy company.

“Covid unfortunately changed those plans. We will shortly set out our plans for the national public energy agency.”

Mr Sarwar said the Scottish Government had failed to keep its promises, saying “this week, the people of Scotland saw a change is coming with Labour”.

But the First Minister said “Labour, just like the Tories, is now a pro-Brexit party regardless of the economic damage that is doing”.