Keir Starmer will promise to usher in a new era of economic growth and permanently reduce energy costs by transforming the UK into an independent green ‘superpower’ before 2030 through massive deployment of wind and solar power.
Announcing details of the plan exclusively to the Observer, the Labor leader said he would double the amount of onshore wind power, triple solar power and more than quadruple offshore wind power, thereby “re-industrialising” the country to a zero-carbon one , to create self-sufficient electricity system by the end of this decade.
Starmer says the move — far more ambitious than any Tory green policy and the most far-reaching of his leadership yet — would free the British people from the mercy of “dictators” like Russian President Vladimir Putin over energy bills.
It would also, he says, cut households’ annual energy bills “forever” by hundreds of pounds, create up to half a million jobs in the UK and make that country the first to have a zero-emissions energy system.
Labour’s new approach is being unveiled as the government’s plan to boost economic growth through a sweeping program of tax cuts – announced by Kwasi Kwarteng, the new Chancellor, on Friday – is met with growing criticism.
Yesterday, think tanks and leading economists said the Conservatives’ plan would mainly help the wealthiest and benefit the wealthier south of England, rather than helping struggling households and the most disadvantaged parts of the country. It also spooked the financial markets.
In the hours after Kwarteng spoke to MPs in the House of Commons, the pound fell more than 3% against the dollar to levels last seen 37 years ago, and the cost of government bonds suffered its biggest daily rise since 1991.
Those early reactions have fueled fears of more carnage when markets reopen on Monday. Some economists believe the Bank of England may be forced to hold an emergency meeting to consider further rate hikes to avoid defeat.
Former bank policymaker Martin Weale said markets were “scared” by unfunded tax cuts being pumped into the economy at a time of high inflation. “It’s hard to see this politics [of tax cuts] Happy endings.” He added: “I expect sterling to fall further next week and if that’s the case the Bank of England may have to step in with even higher interest rates.”
Starmer made it clear that his alternative approach to boosting growth is to tackle three crises together – the climate, the cost of living and the broader economy.
Party aides said history has shown that Labor was at its best and most successful when it captured a sense of “modernity and the future”, as in 1964 when Harold Wilson became Prime Minister with a vision of a new Britain in the “white heat”. create “scientific revolution”.
Starmer said while the Conservatives indulged in “casino economics” and were “risking the mortgages and finances of every family in the country”, Labor was trying to create a secure future for all, both economically and in the face of climate change.
Keir Starmer arrives in Liverpool for the party conference. Photo: Ian Forsyth/Getty Images
“The British people are fed up with skyrocketing energy costs and exposing our energy system to dictators,” Starmer said ahead of Labour’s annual conference which opens in Liverpool on Sunday.
“They want long-term solutions to bring the bills down for good. A key task of my government will be to make the UK a clean energy superpower.
“This is a plan that will create jobs, lower the cost of living and protect our homes for future generations by tackling the climate crisis.”
Starmer has been working with Ed Miliband, the shadow undersecretary for climate change, for months on what they call their green prosperity plan.
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The core idea is to build a self-sufficient energy system by the end of the decade, powered entirely by cheap, domestic renewable energy and nuclear power. This, they argue, would also allow the country to become a major energy exporter.
In the interview, Starmer said the arrival of Liz Truss as Prime Minister created a clearer ideological divide between the Conservatives and Labor, which was evident in the way the two party leaders tackled challenges related to the cost of living and energy prices.
There was, Starmer said, “a huge divide in the economy and who is growing the economy.”
While Labor wants to create growth by putting working people at the heart of a green economic revolution, he said Truss wants her tax cuts “to benefit those at the top, so she wants a trickle-down economy to make the rich richer.” make, give them tax cuts. So there is a huge ideological divide there.”
The Labor leader added that his party could now fight on issues outside of their traditional “comfort zones” such as the NHS in the next election. She was now able to present the electorate with a more credible argument on economic policy as a whole than the Tories.
Starmer said that after the new government’s mini-budget on Friday it was clear that “the roles have been reversed” and Labor is now the party of “fiscal responsibility”.
The latest Opinium poll for the Observer today, conducted largely ahead of the Chancellor’s tax cut announcements and the first since Truss was ranked 10th, shows no boost for the Conservatives from the change of leader and prime minister.
It shows Labor leading by 5 points (up 1 point from three weeks ago) to 39% while the Tories remain flat at 34%.
Commenting on Labour’s energy plan, Rebecca Newsom, policy chief at Greenpeace UK: “The only way out of this mess is a moonshot mission to introduce a renewable energy-based energy system that can cut our bills, cut emissions, create jobs and break our dependency Gas markets and fossil fuel autocrats.
“Labour seems to have understood that, the Conservatives have not.”
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