Reform will ‘betray’ young people by waging war on clean energy, Miliband to say

Reform will “betray” every young person and future generations by waging a war on clean energy, Ed Miliband is expected to say.

The Energy Secretary will announce a host of initiatives aimed at bringing energy bills down and boosting green jobs during his speech at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool on Wednesday.

But he will also use his speech to attack Reform leaders who said they would “declare war” on green energy projects, which are being championed nationwide by the Labour Government.

It comes as Labour have been drawing battle lines at the conference to take on Reform, who they are trailing in the polls.

Mr Miliband is expected to say: “What is so exciting about clean energy is that it can answer that call for a different kind of economy … run for working people.

“It offers the biggest opportunity for job creation for decades. Skilled jobs in proud professions.

“And behind these statistics is the potential for each and every one of these jobs to change the lives of working people and their communities,” he will add.

“Reform would wreck everything we are doing. They’ve said they would ‘wage war’ on clean energy.

“Let’s spell out what this war means. A war on the workers at the Siemens wind turbine factory in Hull. A war on the construction workers building carbon capture and storage in Teesside. A war on the working people of Britain.

“Reform’s war on the future would betray every young person in our country and every person yet to be born.”

During his speech, the Energy Secretary will also announce the expansion of a scheme providing funding to install solar panels on schools and hospitals.

The initiative, led by Great British Energy, has seen around 200 schools and 200 NHS sites funded to have solar panels installed, with some starting to save money on their bills.

Its expansion will mean another 50 schools and 70 NHS sites will also get support, Mr Miliband will reveal.

Ahead of the speech, he said: “This is the common-sense, patriotic case for clean energy that you get with a Labour Government.

“Clean power cutting bills to help pupils and patients.

“This is the difference a Labour Government makes; fighting for working people through our clean energy mission.”

The Energy Secretary is also set to announce a new initiative to help cut bills for military sites and unveil details on the Government’s clean energy jobs plan, which will aim to double jobs in the sector from 430,000 to 830,000 by 2030.

Within this, the Government aims to boost engineering and research jobs by 25,000, welder and electrician jobs by 26,000, and construction jobs by 36,000, he will say.

Elsewhere, Mr Miliband is expected to launch a workers’ rights initiative, which will include the introduction of a fair work charter to ensure clean energy jobs are fairly paid with strong workers’ rights.

This will include plans to close loopholes that give offshore renewable energy workers fewer rights at work than oil and gas workers and ensure worker representation on the boards of publicly owned bodies like Great British Energy.

Currently, offshore renewable and low-carbon employees working more than 12 miles offshore are not covered by the national minimum wage, whereas offshore workers in oil and gas are covered in all territorial waters.

Ami McCarthy, Greenpeace UK’s head of politics, said: “Delivering lower bills through cheaper wind and solar is the best way to silence the likes of Reform UK.

“It is right for Miliband to call out these climate deniers bankrolled by fossil fuel interests for what they are – snake oil salespeople who want to keep us dependent on expensive imports and locked into high bills.

“The Government’s quest for lower energy bills for the public sector, households and businesses could and should go further by ending the rigged system that enables gas to set electricity prices. That way cheaper, more stable wind and solar can lower our bills for good.”

Daniel Elkeles, chief executive of NHS Providers, said: “It’s great news that even more NHS sites will get funding to install solar panels to help them cut their energy bills.

“Spiralling energy costs have landed hospitals with huge bills – more than £1.4 billion since 2019.

“Supporting NHS trusts to generate their own solar power and to invest savings going back into local NHS services is good for patients, good for the environment and good for taxpayers.”