Speaking at a port in North Wales, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has announced that Great British Energy, a publicly-owned company, will fund the construction of floating offshore wind farms.

Labour has pledged to decarbonise the UK by 2030, while the Conservatives target 2035 for net zero energy supply. The Tories said Labour’s plan was “unfunded” and would mean higher taxes.

Sir Keir said: “Here in Wales, the potential for offshore wind is enormous, and the UK Tory government is squandering it. With public investment through Great British Energy we can unlock billions more in private investment to turbocharge jobs and growth for Wales.”

Starmer and new Welsh First Minister Vaughan Gething pledged that a future UK Labour government will work with the Welsh Labour Government to invest in homegrown clean energy and “turbocharge jobs and growth” for Wales, with infrastructure and jobs that are built to last.

Credit: PA Images

But Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho, said “Sir Keir Starmer can’t say what he will do to protect our energy security because he does not have a plan – he set out a 2030 decarbonisation promise, which Labour themselves costed at £28bn without a plan to pay for it”, the BBC reported.

As well as offshore wind, Labour said they would veto any new oil and gas licences in UK waters if elected.

Wales Wealth Fund 

In a separate report, from the think-tank The Institute of Welsh Affairs, released at the same time said that the Welsh Government should set terms of engagement with the commercial renewable energy sector, ensuring Wales retains greater income from the renewable energy developments it hosts.

The report said that despite ambitious targets, a lack of strategic dialogue and policy guidance currently allows wealth to leak out of Wales. One of the recommendations from the report was that the Welsh Government should establish a Wales Wealth Fund, reinvesting income from renewable energy projects for the long-term benefits of future generations. The fund would capture ‘sovereign wealth fund Payments’ of at least 15% of net revenues made from future large scale onshore and offshore wind projects with an installed capacity over 50 MW in Wales.