Sir Keir Starmer will pledge to “lower bills, create jobs and ensure energy security” by removing the ban on new onshore wind farms and removing planning barriers that hinder green initiatives.
In a speech on Monday, the Labor leader is expected to set new targets to cut the time needed to complete clean energy projects from “years to months”.
The party has also committed to a local food plan which it says will see households across the UK benefit from reductions on their bills if their area signs up for new green initiatives.
Sir Keir will explain how a new public body, GB Energy, will work with councils, communities and the private sector to reduce energy costs.
The electric plan would be owned directly by local people, with profits from power sold to the grid from local renewable energy programs being returned to the community through reductions on bills for households in need, the party said. labor.
GB Energy will make available up to £600million in funding for councils and up to £400million in low-interest loans each year for communities, it claims.
The ban on new onshore wind would also be lifted within months of a Labor government taking power and measures would be introduced to ensure that the regulators involved have a net zero mandate.
The party pledges to cut up to £1,400 from household bills and £53bn from business energy bills by 2030 with its plans.
Speaking in Scotland with Scottish Labor leader Anas Sarwar, Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Shadow Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, the Labor leader will say: ‘We can cut bills, create jobs and deliver energy security to Britain – that’s what a Labor government will deliver.
“We need to roll up our sleeves and start building things, running towards the hurdles – the planning system, the skills shortages, investor confidence, the network.
“If the status quo is not enough, we must find the reforms that can restart our engine. I will not accept a situation where our planning system means that it takes 13 years to build an offshore wind farm.
In his speech, Sir Keir is expected to make promises on planning reform, procurement and long-term financing.
He will say: “A new plan for a new colony. Clear direction across the four nations. Uniting for a simple and unifying priority: British power for British jobs.
“It’s the ride of our lives – and the price is real.”
The party hopes the latest announcement will boost confidence in its commitment to green energy initiatives after it recently drew criticism from environmental campaigners for backing down from its £28billion-a-year spending pledge under the plan. of green prosperity.
Labor had promised in 2021 to invest £28billion a year until 2030 in green projects if they came to power.
That figure will now be a target to be achieved in the second half of a first parliament, the party said, citing the changed economic backdrop of the past two years.
Mr Sarwar said he wants Scotland and the UK to ‘lead the world in the Green Revolution’ as he spoke before the party announced further details of its plans.
He told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: ‘We want to use the strength of the UK Treasury to legitimately lead a green revolution in our country and our plans are anchored in four key principles, the first is more jobs no fewer jobs, second, lower bills not higher bills, third, greater energy security and less dependence on imports from despotic regimes like Russia, and fourth, climate leadership.
The Scottish Labor leader insisted there would be ‘no cliff edge’ caused by the party’s policy of banning new oil and gas licenses in the North Sea, which, according to the Conservatives, will lead to job losses, because all existing ones will be “honoured”. ”.
Environmental activists welcomed the plans, but warned they needed to be accompanied by adequate investment to succeed.
Mike Childs, Head of Science, Policy and Research at Friends of the Earth, said: “With plans for communities to benefit from local clean energy projects and a commitment to lift the ban on onshore wind, Labor says a lot of good things about energy policy.
“But to have a credible climate plan in place, there can be no turning back on promises to stop further oil and gas extraction and invest in green growth.
“The climate crisis is the greatest threat facing the world. Sir Keir Starmer must clarify that the age of fossil fuels is over and the only viable future is a carbon-free economy. This means investing urgently in a street-by-street insulation program and cheap local renewable energy to reduce emissions, stimulate the economy, create new jobs, increase energy security and help permanently reduce our utility bills. ‘energy.
Meanwhile, the Tories claimed the plan would appease ‘eco-zealots’ and sought to link Labor to Just Stop Oil, with whom they shared a donor.
A party spokesman said: ‘Labour’s Energy Divestment Plan, drafted by Just Stop Oil, appeases their eco-zealot payers but does nothing for Britain’s long-term energy security.
“You cannot trust Labor to make tough decisions on Britain’s energy security because Keir Starmer is being held hostage by extremists in his party and his Just Stop Oil backers. Even the unions know that Labor is wrong.
