The problem with Labour’s green energy plan

Ed Miliband told the EnergyUK conference this morning that he wants to take on the ‘blockers, delayers and obstructionists’ who stand in the way of Britain’s energy security. Oh good, does that mean that finally he appreciates that the North Sea needs some encouragement? And that a UK fracking industry will finally be allowed to commence, after years of being blocked in the courts by environmentalists spinning false stories about how it will cause your water taps to burst into flames and cause devastating earthquakes (including those actually felt at the Earth’s surface)?

Er, sadly not. Miliband, of course, rather likes blockers and delayers when they are on his side. Indeed, the entire government does, which is why it is not challenging the High Court’s decision last week to quash planning permission for a Cumbrian coal mine. This mine would have provided coking coal for the UK’s steel industry (or at least would have done before the previous government pulled the plug on Britain’s primary steel industry, forcing us to import steel instead).

Stand in the way of oil and gas – which even the Labour party manifesto accepted is going to form part of our energy mix for decades to come – and the government will won’t lift a finger to stop you.