Protests disrupt energy review launch
Tony Blair today announced a review of Britain’s energy policy, looking specifically at whether the country’s ageing nuclear power stations should be replaced.
The prime minister was forced to make the announcement in a cramped side room at the CBI conference in London after Greenpeace anti-nuclear protestors took over the main hall.
Describing the situation as “surreal”, Mr Blair accepted that the issue of nuclear power was a “difficult and challenging issue”, but told business leaders: “That’s like most tough issues to decide.
“What we actually need is a serious, open and democratic debate, not one stopped by protest and demonstration to stop people being able to express their views.”
He said the review would measure the government’s progress against the goals outlined in the 2003 energy white paper, with a view to publishing a policy statement next spring, and would “specifically look at whether to facilitate the development of a new generation of nuclear power”.
About one fifth of Britain’s energy is currently provided by nuclear power, but this is set to fall to four per cent by 2020, when several existing power stations are decommissioned.
Pressure is mounting on ministers to take a decision on whether to begin rebuilding nuclear power stations, as each new one takes up to a decade to build, and last week the government’s chief scientific advisor, David King, called on them “to give the green light” to begin the process.
This morning Mr Blair acknowledged this sense of urgency, noting that changes in both nuclear and coal plans mean that more than 30 per cent of Britain’s electricity supply would need to be replaced by 2020.
“Some of this would be replaced by renewals, but not all of it can,” he warned.
He also noted the pressures on other energy supplies – the decline in production of North Sea gas has led to a greater dependency on importing it from outside of Britain, while rising prices were set to hit heavy users hard this winter.
Another major concern facing the government is that of climate change. Mr Blair said Britain was set to meet its carbon dioxide emissions targets under the Kyoto protocol, but admitted emissions had recently begun to increase.
Kyoto expires in 2012, and a UN conference in Montreal is this week looking at what could follow. Today the prime minister said he expected further binding international agreements to take its place – and Britain must adapt accordingly.
The review of Britain’s energy needs has long been expected, and the prime minister said that it was part of a wider, global “feverish rethinking” of energy policy, born of rising prices, threats to energy supplies and concerns about climate change.
“The future is clean energy, and all governments are seeking to diversify [their energy sources], he added.
However, critics argue nuclear power is not the only answer to tackling climate change. Friends of the Earth director Tony Juniper warned it was expensive and “leaves deadly nuclear waste that remains dangerous for tens of thousands of years”.
“The UK can meet its targets for tackling climate change and maintain fuel security by using clean, safe alternatives that are already available,” he added.
Conservative industry spokesman David Willetts bemoaned yet another review and said it was testament to Labour’s failure to tackle the problem in the past.
And Lib Dem environment spokesman Norman Baker said he was of the view that Mr Blair had already decided to back more nuclear power, adding: “This review will serve little purpose if the prime minister has already made up his mind.”
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