Labour to push beyond 2020 target for 60 per cent renewable energy

Shadow energy secretary sets out clean growth ambitions in absence of Conservative plan

Labour’s shadow secretary of state for business and energy has said that she hopes the party can exceed its manifesto commitment that 60 per cent of energy is provided from renewable power sources by 2030.

Responding to a question at a Labour conference fringe session yesterday, sponsored by Centrica, Rebecca Long-Bailey agreed that the party can “do a lot more” than meet its manifesto pledge.

She said: “The 60 per cent target is ambitious but is necessary. I think we can meet it but hope we can go a lot further. We want transformational change in the energy market.”

Long-Bailey, who is widely tipped to be a front runner for the future leadership of Labour when Jeremy Corbyn steps down, also criticised the government over the delayed publication of its clean growth plan, which was due to be published when the House of Commons returned from its summer recess earlier this month. 

She said: “The government is rolling back on most of its climate change commitments and they haven’t even produced their clean growth plan. We need to act and fast.”

“Climate change commitments are not a gentlemen’s agreement that we can renege on when we feel like it. We have a duty to leave a better world to future generations: that is a the core of the Labour approach going forward.”

Long-Bailey said that the plunge in offshore wind subsidies in the latest CfD (contract for difference) auctions was “fantastic news”.

However, she expressed concern about the way that the higher strike price negotiated by EDF for the Hinkley Point C project was being used as a stick to beat the wider nuclear power programme. 

She said: “The argument about Hinkley that is forming provides a skewed and unfortunate perspective on the nuclear market that the Labour Party will seek to remediate as soon as possible.”

Long-Bailey criticised the government for refusing to exempt solar plant and machinery when it carried out its revaluation of the business rates regime earlier this year.

She also said that Labour was examining how to implement its manifesto commitment to bring the National Grid back into public ownership.

She said: “We want to extend greater control over the National Grid which we would start by altering license conditions. We will be asking about hurdles so we have legislation ready to go when we enter government.”

Finally, Long-Bailey added that it is important for the UK to continue collaborating with other European countries on energy issues after Brexit, commenting that it was “very frightening that we are about to hurtle out of Euratom.”