Via, this:
Renewable target now untenable: The Labour Party has implicitly abandoned its commitment to the 2020
renewable target and probably the 2030 green house gas reduction target. We assume that Labour could
not be so staggeringly naive / stupid / miss-informed as to believe that an arbitrary price cap is compatibile
with the threefold (£100bn plus) increase in investment required from next year to hit the renewable target.
Therefore we can only conclude that Labour have now abandoned their environmental targets.
Won’t Caroline Lucas be happy.
Doesn’t do much for a prospective LabLib coalition either, if it comes to that. surely even this shower of idiots can’t imagine promoting a minimum strike price AND a price cap?
Capping retail prices whilst leaving suppliers exposed to the wholesale market and escalating renewable subsidy costs will kill the retail market, and it will be independent suppliers (i.e. competitors to the ‘big 6’) that will be the biggest losers. How will that help consumers?
No, Labour can continue to subsidise windmills and solar panels out of our energy bills. It is just that Centrica, SSE, and the foreign-owned suppliers will be required to operate their UK power supply businesses at an increasing loss as the nationalised Electricity industry did in Callaghan’s latter years, concealing the level of inflation under Labour. This will continue until they go bankrupt or Labour is thrown out
Just out of interest, how much of that investment into UK generation be a bonus to the economy in contruction, supply chain etc?
There is no such thing as “green” energy. Some of it may be marginally less resource demanding than others, but any extensive energy use has its effects. The trouble is that the marginally less demanding may be more than marginally less cost effective. Hence all the problems
Lucas won’t care – she and her tree-shagging loony-lefty friends will just demand that the ‘investment’ be subsidised even more using the Magic Money Tree.
Interesting infographic on Guido showing UK energy prices are not actually that bad compared to the rest of Europe.
http://order-order.com/2013/09/25/how-do-uk-retail-energy-prices-compare-to-rest-of-europe/
So, just another lefty demagogue waving his anti-capitalist credentials.
As I’ve said elsewhere, this isn’t about energy prices, it’s designed to create a failing energy market that can only be saved by, Yes, you guessed it, Nationalisation!
Make the market so awful, with brown-outs, power companies quitting the UK, suing the Govt that the only option is to seize the means of production. By then people will be so fed up they’ll cheer them on.
@John77
Will that trigger the second coming of St Margaret Hilda, riding on clouds of heaven with angels in attendance and gathering the faithful from all four corners of the globe?
@ DocBud
It didn’t the last four times Labour were thrown out – I am sure I should have noticed.
PS globes don’t have corners
@John77
I was really referring to your mention of Callaghan.
You can correct me if appropriate, but I do believe Labour has only been thrown out once since those blessed handbags did traverse over England’s mountains green and were upon England’s pleasant pastures seen. And that countenance Divine, shone forth upon our clouded hills and shut down the dark satanic (commie breeding) steel mills?
While your point vis-a-vis four corners of the globe is technically correct, it is a perfectly cromulent idiom which embiggens any comment which refers to every part of the planet.
DocBud
Not a correction; a reminder:
Tony Blair, Peter Mandelson and NEW Labour won those three elections. And you’ve shown this week just how much you really love them haven’t you.
@ DocBud
The original quote was four corners of the *earth* dating from time that people thought that it was flat.
I missed the implied reference to Callaghan
John77
Some people still do believe the Earth is flat. They’re called Greens and Marxists.
Ironman,
New Labour won three elections and then got thrown out once. I’m curious as to what you mean by me having demonstrated love for them this week.
It was sarcasm you prat.
I was referring to the way you Labour flat-earthers booed the mention of Tony Blair’s name at your conference a couple of years ago and the way Peter Mandelson is hated by all true followers. THEY won general elections, New Labour, having first seen off the flat-earth society called Labour. By contrast Labour, the Gordon Brown, Red Ed variety, hasn’t won a general election in 40 years.
I’m a Labour flat earther?