Govt plan to ban new solar farms
Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2022 1:23 pm
The woman is barking mad. You can't explain the lack of logic any other way, apart from maybe an attempt to appease (or enrich) some loony extremist groups like Rees-Mogg's fossil fuel and Hedge Fund friends...Truss plan to block solar farms is deeply unpopular – so why is she so keen? by Simon Evans
The PM has united unlikely forces in opposition to moves that make little sense and contradict her own policies
Liz Truss and her environment secretary, Ranil Jayawardena, have achieved the almost unthinkable this week, by reportedly moving to ban solar farms from much of England.
In doing so, they have even managed to unite the free-market, anti-net-zero Institute of Economic Affairs thinktank with green groups, the energy industry and the Labour party in opposing the plans.
Banning solar farms from most of England’s farmland would place Truss squarely in opposition to the policy priorities she set out in her own speech to the Conservative party conference.
Under the banner “get Britain moving”, the prime minister said she wanted faster economic growth, lower energy bills, reinforced energy security, more renewables and action to tackle the climate crisis. Yet the solar ban would hold back investment, lead to higher energy bills, lock in continued gas imports, stop renewable growth and stall efforts to reach net zero emissions.
Truss said her ambition was to unleash “growth, growth and growth”. This will be news to the investors waiting to pour up to £20bn into new UK solar projects, according to the Financial Times.