Stuart Anderson MP has attacked Ed Miliband's latest wind auction, which locks households across South Shropshire into paying even higher energy costs for decades to come.
Average energy bills have increased by £190 since Labour came to power, despite Labour's manifesto promise to cut them by £300. Now they have risen again, wiping out the £150 cut announced at the Budget. The UK has already halved its emissions since 1990, reducing emissions by more than any other major economy. However, Ed Miliband's latest wind auction has locked billpayers into record high offshore wind prices of £95/MWh for 20 years, increasing the cost of energy bills.
In Parliament, Stuart said:
"The price that has been fixed today is higher than gas with the reduction of carbon tax and higher than the average for gas for all of last year. South Shropshire residents’ energy bills have been going up since the Secretary of State has been in post. Can he promise when energy bills will come down for my constituents?
Stuart has said that the Government should adopt The Conservatives Cheap Power Plan which will immediately cut electricity bills by a fifth, saving households £165 so they have more to spend on what matters. Our plan would also cut costs for pubs, restaurants, and small businesses who are being hammered by this government. The price - which stands at £95 megawatt hour (MWh) - is the highest for offshore wind in a decade and much higher than the current cost of electricity, which stands at £81/MWh. The auction is part of the Contracts for Difference (CfD) Allocation Round 7 (AR7), which Energy Minister Michael Shanks MP has promoted as the "single largest auction in European history."
Gas power without green levies is under £55/MWh, yet the domestic production of oil and gas in the North Sea is set to half by 2030 as the government has imposed a ban on new licences. Subsequently, Stuart has warned that the contracts adds billions in green levies on annual energy bills for households across South Shropshire. The Energy Secretary has also extended the wind developers' subsidy contracts for twenty years. Stuart has said that this locks British families into paying higher energy bills for decades to come. The annual subsidy cost is already £25.8 billion a year, a sum which is equivalent to nearly fifty per cent of the UK's annual spending on defence.
The latest set of decisions could add a further £1.8 billion to household energy bills.
Stuart has said that axing the Carbon Tax would save the average household £75 on their electricity bills. It would reduce wholesale electricity prices by a third, or around £26 per MWh. The tax includes the Emissions Trading and the Carbon Price Support schemes, which the Renewable Energy Foundation has said accounts for almost half of the cost of producing electricity in Britain.
In November, Stuart pledged his support for the Conservatives' Cheap Power Plan which would cut electricity bills by a fifth or £165 for an average home in South Shropshire. Under the Conservative Party Plan, the average restaurant would save £5,100 a year and £1,100 for the average pub.
Stuart's Energy Saver's Guide helps residents to save money on their energy bills - with useful information, tips, and guidance on energy tariffs, home insulation, and others home efficiency measures.
