Tony Blair calls on Labour to ditch key net zero target
Tony Blair’s think tank has called for the government to ditch its 2030 clean power target as it urged the Labour government to focus on making electricity cheaper in order to persuade Brits to use it over gas.
In a report published by the Tony Blair Institute (TBI), researchers called for the government to “solve” problems including the decline of North Sea oil production, which had made the UK less secure.
It is the latest indication that Blair has split from Keir Starmer’s government on key issues after the former Prime Minister publicly backed a cut to the top rate of income tax of 40 per cent.
Central to its net zero policy, the Labour government wants to remove almost all fossil fuels from the UK’s electricity supply by 2030. But the fresh report argues that a focus on making bills cheaper would help to cut emissions and grow the UK economy.
It also states that a shift in focus would help accelerate electrification across households and industry, which it said was “essential” for decarbonisation.
“The UK’s current energy strategy risks getting the balance wrong,” energy researcher Tone Langengen said.
“If the transition continues in a way that raises costs, weakens reliability and undermines growth, it will fail both politically and practically.
“That failure would erode public support at home, damage Britain’s credibility abroad and hand momentum to opponents of climate action.”
The TBI also emphasised that the UK required “mass electrification” and that net zero goals were aligned with a greater focus on considering how lower energy costs could improve the UK’s competitiveness.
A Number 10 spokesman said the government remained committed to its 2030 clean power target.
““he government and Prime Minister is fully committed to delivering clean power by 2030 because it is how we deliver a system that brings down bills for consumers and protects them against future energy shocks,” the spokesman said.
‘Homegrown power’
The report received an endorsement from the leading energy industry group, Energy UK.
Chief executive Dhara Vyas said “homegrown power” would allow energy prices to be minimise costs for households and businesses.
“The energy sector is clear that clean power and electrification is the only way to bring down bills in the long-term by reducing our exposure to volatile fossil fuel markets,” Vyas said.
“It’s also important to consider whether inaction or delay increases future costs.
“Businesses investing billions of pounds in our country’s future rely on long-term stability to do so, and so it’s vital that the government continues to provide certainty in order to achieve this much needed transformation.”
Earlier this year, Blair said net zero efforts required a reset as people had been asked to make “financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle” they had not expected.
He suggested that net zero risked losing support if fossil fuels were phased out too quickly.
A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said: “This report rightly recognises that clean power is the right choice for this country. This government’s clean power mission is exactly how we will deliver cheaper power and bring down bills for good.
“Our mission is relentlessly focused on delivering lower bills for the British people, to tackle the affordability crisis that has been driven by our dependence on fossil fuel markets.”