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Hinkley Point C has become a battleground in the Scottish independence debate, with first minister Alex Salmond accusing Westminster of stifling Scottish views on nuclear power.
UK energy minister Michael Fallon reportedly warned Scottish counterpart Fergus Ewing in February against making any representations to Brussels over the UK’s proposed support for the new nuclear plant. Such an intervention would be viewed as a “hostile act”, Fallon said.
The Scottish Government has made no secret of its opposition to subsidies for nuclear. It said in a November white paper an independent Scotland would not allow Scottish generation to be “compromised” by “expensive, long-term contracts for new nuclear generation”.
Meanwhile, the European Commission is consulting on whether to grant the UK state aid approval for its proposed support package for Hinkley. It has questioned whether the package, including a £92.5/MWh guaranteed power price for 35 years, is justified.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change (Decc) argued thatScotlandis still part of theUKand “cannot act as a separate entity” when it comes to Europe. Any concerns should be raised directly with the UK government, not the European Commission. A spokeswoman said: “It would not be acceptable for one part of the same member state to intervene against policy proposals from another.”
The Scottish National Party begs to differ. Salmond took up the issue with prime minister David Cameron, saying in a letter: “At best, this could be interpreted as an inept attempt to stifle legitimate views from the Scottish Government. At worst, it is a direct threat with implied retribution.”
The spat has flared up amid a week of claim and counter-claim on the impact of Scottish independence on the energy sector.
The Scottish Government published a report on Monday saying the UK needed Scotland’s generation to avert a costly capacity crunch.
Decc in turn produced analysis suggesting the break would hike Scottish household energy bills by up to £189 a year.
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