Latest news with #EnergySecurityandNetZero
The Herald Scotland
17 hours ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Energy costs to be cut for industry as Starmer seeks economic ‘turning point'
The Prime Minister said the plan marks a 'turning point for Britain's economy' by supporting key industries where there is potential for growth. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the plan would offer long-term certainty for key industries (Andy Buchanan/PA) Manufacturers have warned 'crippling' power costs are far higher for UK businesses than competitors overseas. From 2027, a new British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme will cut costs by up to £40 per megawatt hour for over 7,000 manufacturing firms by exempting them from levies on bills including the renewables obligation, feed-in tariffs and the capacity market. Around 500 of the most energy-intensive firms, including the steel industry, chemicals and glassmaking, will also see their network charges cut – they currently get a 60% discount through the British Industry Supercharger scheme, which will increase to 90% from 2026. The plan also promises measures to speed up the time it can take to connect new factories and projects to the energy grid. Sir Keir said: 'This industrial strategy marks a turning point for Britain's economy and a clear break from the short-termism and sticking plasters of the past.' He said the decade-long plan would deliver 'the long-term certainty and direction British businesses need to invest' during an 'era of global uncertainty'. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband blamed 'our reliance on gas sold on volatile international markets' for the high electricity costs for businesses. He said 'doubling down' on wind and nuclear power would 'bring down bills for households and businesses for good'. The industrial strategy focuses on eight areas where the UK is already strong and there is potential for further growth: advanced manufacturing, clean energy, creative industries, defence, digital, financial services, life sciences and professional and business services. Plans for five of the sectors will be published on Monday, but the defence, financial services and life sciences strategies will come later. Other measures include: – Increasing the British Business Bank's financial capacity to £25.6 billion, including £4 billion for sectors in the industrial strategy. – Raising research and development spending to £22.6 billion a year by 2029/30. – An extra £1.2 billion a year for skills by 2028-29 to train Britons to do jobs in growth industries and reduce reliance on foreign workers. – Attracting 'elite' overseas talent through visa and migration reforms. – Cutting the administrative cost of red tape by 25% and reducing the number of regulators. – Reducing the time it takes to get planning permission by hiring more planners, streamlining pre-application requirements and combining environmental obligations. – Increasing the supply of locations for investment around the country with a £600 million strategic sites accelerator. Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband said relying on gas from volatile markets had driven costs sky-high for businesses (Kin Cheung/PA) The strategy comes after the latest figures indicated the economy shrank by 0.3% in April, the biggest monthly contraction in gross domestic product for a year-and-a-half, as businesses felt the impact of Donald Trump's tariffs and domestic pressure as a result of hikes to firms' national insurance contributions. There are also concerns in industry about the impact of the Government's Employment Rights Bill, which could add to business costs. Confederation of British Industry chief executive Rain Newton-Smith said: 'More competitive energy prices, fast-tracked planning decisions and backing innovation will provide a bedrock for growth. 'But the global race to attract investment will require a laser-like and unwavering focus on the UK's overall competitiveness.' Manufacturers' organisation Make UK's chief Stephen Phipson said the three major challenges facing industry were 'a skills crisis, crippling energy costs and an inability to access capital for new British innovators', and the strategy 'sets out plans to address all three'. TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: 'We welcome ministers taking action to reduce sky-high energy costs for manufacturers – something unions have been calling for as a matter of urgency. 'For too long, UK industry has been hamstrung by energy prices far above those in France and Germany. It's made it harder to compete, invest, and grow.' Acting shadow energy secretary Andrew Bowie said: 'It is astonishing that Labour are finally admitting that the costs of net zero are so high that they're having to spend billions of pounds of taxpayers' money subsidising businesses' energy bills to stop them going bust.' Shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith has written an open letter to firms warning they are being 'sleepwalked into disaster' by the Employment Rights Bill. He said: 'When it comes to business, it's actions, not words, which count, but this Government is stepping on the accelerator and the brake at the same time.'
Scotsman
16-06-2025
- Business
- Scotsman
It's time for the tale of lost North Sea jobs to stop - and Acorn carbon capture is a start
Support for Acorn was an important step for industrial Scotland and a reminder of the home-grown advantage we still hold. Sign up to our Politics newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, 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... Last year, the UK relied on imports for nearly 40 per cent of its energy needs – a record high. And yet the North Sea remains an untapped strategic economic asset. Offshore wind, hydrogen and carbon capture projects aren't as advanced as hoped when COP26 took place in Glasgow. Volumes of oil and gas produced in UK waters continue to decline faster than expected in the face of policy uncertainty. In an uncertain world, that is not the place to be. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The loss of sovereign capability is not only a tale to be told of our North Sea, but also of our manufacturing bases. From shipbuilding on the Clyde to chemical processing on the Firth of Forth, many of us of a certain age have watched Scotland's manufacturing significantly shrink. Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband during a visit to St Fergus, Peterhead in Aberdeenshire, to welcome funding to progress the Acorn project as confirmed in the Spending Review. Picture: PA That isn't good news for our economy, for our jobs or for our communities. Carbon capture and storage is a catalyst to tell a different story. Located at St Fergus near Peterhead, Acorn will capture carbon from high-emission sectors like glass, cement and power generation, compress it, and store it deep beneath the North Sea in depleted oil and gas reservoirs. A repurposed network of more than 200 miles of pipeline, including links from Grangemouth, will transport these emissions for storage. The UK government's £200 million investment announced this week, part of a wider £9.4 billion commitment, sends a clear and welcome signal. The Scottish Government, too, has long championed carbon capture and Scotland's role in leading the transition. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad For communities like Falkirk and Aberdeen, Acorn represents real, long-term opportunity. Once the development is sanctioned, the project is expected to support around 10,800 construction jobs and create up to 4,700 long-term roles. As the Chancellor said last week, where things are made, and who makes them, matters. For too long we have watched the decline of industry, imported many of our basic needs while exporting jobs and economic value. The support for the Acorn project provides an important signal. Critical decisions in the coming months lie ahead that will shape Scotland's industrial future.
Scotsman
10-06-2025
- Business
- 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
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Planning change to make installing heat pump easier for millions
A key planning restriction that heat pumps need to be one meter from a neighbour's property has been lifted as the government seeks to accelerate the take up of the low-carbon technology. The change, which is part of the government's Warm Homes Plan to lower household bills and cut planet warming emissions, means it could be easier for millions of homes in England to have a heat pump installed. But consumer groups warn that the changes will not help those in rented or leasehold properties and the biggest barrier to installing a heat pump remains the high upfront costs. This is a particular problem for older housing stock where upgrades to pipework and insulation may also be required. What is a heat pump and how much do they cost? Half of homes need heat pump by 2040, government told UK homes install subsidised heat pumps at record level Most UK homes use gas boilers for their hot water and heating, but this produces up to 14% of the country's planet warming greenhouse gases. In comparison, heat pumps use electricity, so as the country moves to generating more electricity from renewable energy sources like solar and wind, they could produce far fewer emissions than boilers. But switching from a gas boiler to a heat pump is expensive and not straightforward if you live in one of England's six million terraced homes. Until Thursday, homeowners needed planning permission if they wanted to put a heat pump within one meter of their neighbour's property - because of concerns over noise. Tom Clarke, a gas engineer who recently retrained to fit heat pumps, said having to apply for planning permission had been a barrier for his customers. "When you look across London we have loads and loads of terraced houses and no matter where you site the appliance it is always going to be within one metre of the boundary," he said. It was particularly problematic for people replacing a broken gas boiler because many customers would not want to go more than a month without heating waiting for council approval, he said. This is echoed by Octopus Energy, who told parliament's Energy Security and Net Zero (ESNZ) Committee in 2023 that this planning rule was affecting 27% of its customers. "Those who try to proceed end up waiting an additional eight to 10 weeks on average. Even if customers meet all the requirements, there is no guarantee that local councils will grant the permission, as they all have different interpretations of central planning guidelines," the company wrote in its submission. "The combined impact of all these things mean that very few of the 27% of customers who require planning have made it to install." The rule has now been dropped to accelerate the uptake of heat pumps. Previous concerns over noise are less of an issue with newer devices, though units will still be required to be below a certain volume level. The planning changes also include a relaxation of the rules for the size and number of heat pumps households can install. Households most likely to be affected are those living in terraced housing. In 2021, they accounted for 5.7 million households, or 23% of the total. Some of these will still need planning permission, for example those living in conservation areas and those installing ground source heat pumps. The change is part of the government's Warm Homes Plan which aims to give 300,000 households upgrades to improve their energy efficiency and lower bills. Although the heat pump industry welcomed the changes, many point out the main barrier for many customers is that installing heat pumps is expensive, particularly in older houses, where better insulation may also be needed. This was the case at social housing estate Sutton Dwellings in Chelsea, London, which underwent a full refurbishment of its fabric alongside a new heating network. Its landlord, Clarion Housing Group, did receive a grant from the government to install the new network but also invested its own money. Stuart Gadsden, commercial director at Kensa, the company which designed and installed the system, said this was an issue for many landlords: "A big [barrier] is funding, this obviously does cost more to install than a traditional gas boiler system. "In the social housing sector we have funding from the warm homes social housing fund, but it was oversubscribed by double. Lots of housing associations want to put low carbon heating in but there is not enough to go around." Renters have to rely on landlords being willing to make the initial upfront investment. Rob Lane, Chief Property Officer at Clarion, said the company was happy to do this at Sutton Dwellings because of the impact for residents: "We're waiting to see how the costs of running this system bear out, but our forecasts suggests that each home is going to cost on average £450 - £500 per home (each year) - considerable savings for residents." From 2030, as part of the Warm Homes plan, there will be mandatory requirements for all private landlords to upgrade the energy efficiency of their properties. But the way that Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) are currently calculated means a gas boiler can sometimes have a better rating than a heat pump because it looks at energy costs and assumes gas is cheaper. Katy King, deputy director of sustainability at charity Nesta, said the government could bring down electricity costs. "The UK has some of the most expensive electricity prices in Europe. The government could take levies off electricity and put them onto gas or use general taxation. It is a tricky choice and one we do expect them to be consulting on within the year," she said. Boiler Upgrade Scheme Environmental rules reviewed for small housebuilders UK sea temperatures soar after exceptionally warm spring
The National
06-05-2025
- Business
- The National
John Swinney challenges UK Government on Acorn Project
Speaking during a major speech at Holyrood and outlining his second Programme for Government on Tuesday, the First Minister said the Scottish Government would increase the amount of Scottish funding available if the UK Government backs it. It comes after Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband announced that a decision on the Acorn project would be made at the June spending review. READ MORE: What's happening with Scotland's Acorn project? The Acorn carbon capture project is based at St Fergus near Peterhead in Aberdeenshire. It works with industrial, power, hydrogen, bioenergy and waste-to-energy businesses who wish to capture CO2 emissions and send them into permanent geological storage under the North Sea. Last year, the UK Government announced the project would progress to its 'track two' stage, and in November Miliband said more information would become available 'in the coming months'. We told how last month, Miliband said he would 'consider' fast-tracking the project, adding that the move could help secure a future for workers at the Grangemouth oil refinery.
