Growing fears for winter after millions of pounds spent to keep the lights on
MPs have warned about a ‘growing risk of blackouts’ over the winter (Image: Getty)
Britain is at “growing risk of blackouts” after the grid operator paid nearly £50million in one day to keep the lights on, MPs said. National Energy System Operator (NESO) forked out a record £49million of billpayer cash in so-called “balancing costs” on Wednesday.
It paid £39.4million the previous day to keep the grid stable, provisional figures showed. Most of the money was spent on extra gas power plants in England when wind turbines in Scotland had to be switched off because the electricity could not be transported south.
Shadow Energy Secretary Andrew Bowie said: “Labour’s net zero obsession has sent energy prices soaring and left our country exposed to global shocks. Now we face the growing risk of blackouts over the winter. Andy Burnham’s dithering and delaying over the Jackdaw and Rosebank oil and gas fields has compounded the problem, with Labour neglecting the resources in front of us for fear of offending their own left flank.”
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NESO, which is the body responsible for keeping Britain’s lights on, was this week forced to issue rare formal requests for “emergency assistance” from the continent. The most recent plea issued on Monday evening was the grid’s largest on record, and power was supplied by France.
Reform UK’s deputy leader Richard Tice said: “Unfortunately, thanks to Britain’s ruinous energy policy over the past decade, the prospect of a return to blackout Britain this winter is back. And it’s all down to, you guessed it, the Government’s dogmatic pursuit of net zero.”
He added: “Believe me, the blackout threat is real … on top of the global humiliation Britain would suffer from power outages, the economic consequences would be disastrous.
“Financial markets would be disrupted. Billions would be squandered in lost output, spoilt inventory and emergency response expenses. Worse, there is the potential for widespread looting and civil unrest.
“Meanwhile, hospitals would be forced to rely upon back-up generators and battery banks. Make no mistake, should blackouts occur this winter, people will die as a direct result. All this is, of course, entirely avoidable.”
NESO bosses are under growing pressure following an incident during June’s heatwave that led whistleblowers to allege a near-blackout was being covered up.
Balancing costs hit a record £505million in September, figures from energy consultancy LCP Delta showed.
The soaring prices have been blamed on the slow construction of new pylons and power lines, preventing energy from being moved around the country easily.
Labour MP Bill Esterson, chairman of the Energy Security and Net Zero Select Committee, said: “We have not had a nationally significant energy outage in over 20 years in the UK, and the select committee has consistently heard that when there are global fuel shortages it is less developed countries that get the blackouts, while in the UK we get higher prices. Reducing prices is of course one of the key reasons the transition to clean, home-grown energy remains so essential.”
It comes as Prime Minister Andy Burnham is expected to make an imminent decision on whether to approve the Jackdaw North Sea gas field. Opposition parties have long called for the Prime Minister to give it the green light to ease cost of living concerns.
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Jess Ralston, head of energy at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, said: “There is no route back to some imagined era of oil and gas self-sufficiency. The North Sea is running out regardless of government policy on new drilling – by the industry’s own estimates, the basin has already produced around 90% of its recoverable reserves.
“More drilling cannot reverse that long-term decline. Those calling to slow down the shift to net zero, which essentially means being less reliant on burning oil and gas, are essentially calling for continued exposure to not only volatile prices, but whatever Putin and Trump decide to do next.”
A NESO spokesman said: “There is no increased risk of electricity blackouts this winter and frequency remained within statutory limits this week. We continuously balance electricity supply and demand, using established operational tools as system conditions change, and Great Britain’s electricity supplies remain secure.”
Britons warned of huge ‘new tax’ if UK rejoins EU – ‘billions back to Brussels’
A push to reverse Brexit is gaining momentum, but it comes at a high cost.
Andy Burnham is preparing for a UK-EU summit next month (Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Britain will have to make radically greater payments into the European Union if the country rejoins with the bill potentially hitting £41billion, according to a eurosceptic think tank. The Bow Group has calculated the UK gross contribution could range from £28billion to £41billion – much more than the £14.4billion paid in 2019. This is based on the assumption there is no possibility the EU would agree to restore the permanent “rebate” negotiated by Margaret Thatcher.
Her former aide Lord Redwood, warned: “The UK would need to impose a large new tax; we cannot afford to go in. We would worry markets more with yet more borrowing. The last thing we need is yet more spending and laws from Brussels.”
According to the House of Commons Library, in 2016 – the year Britons voted to leave the EU – the UK made a gross contribution to the EU Budget of £13.1billion and a net contribution of £9.6billion.
Ben Harris-Quinney, who chairs the Bow Group, said: “Despite promises to accept Brexit the Labour party now seems to be set on the path of quietly taking Britain back into the EU. It’s important that the British public understands that doing so would be far more costly than our previous membership, to say nothing of a likely requirement to join the euro, far greater regulation, and further decades of uncontrolled borders.”
Eurosceptics argue the EU wants the UK to return to boost the finances of the bloc. When Czech PM Andrej Babis was asked if would support the return of Britain to the EU, he said: “Yes of course. We need more money.”
Conservative shadow foreign minister Wendy Morton pointed to his words, saying: “Andy Burnham can’t find the cash to fund our defence, yet he seems comfortable with the idea of handing over billions to Brussels. Instead of trying to turn back the clock to 2016, he should focus on a plan for taking the country forward.”
David Campbell Bannerman fiercely opposes EU re-entry (Image: Paul Marriott)
A Reform UK spokesman warned: “Andy Burnham’s plan to reopen the divisions of the Brexit debate will not only betray the 17.4 million people who voted for Brexit, but will also cost this country dearly. Shackling us to a crumbling bloc whose share of the global economy is rapidly declining will be an economic disaster for Britain, forcing us to become a rule-taker yet again and threatening £164billion worth of post-Brexit trade agreements.”
However, a spokesperson for the pro-EU group Best for Britain said it was “unlikely” the UK could not get “some for of rebate”, adding: “It isn’t an accurate calculation of the cost to the taxpayer, and ignores the £92billion GDP growth to our economy that will be gained from EU membership. A gross calculation of what the UK might have to pay as an EU member is like submitting a tax return without any business expenses, or claiming that your turnover is net profit. But voters facing increased living costs, and businesses swamped by red tape, will be relieved to hear that pro-Brexit voices are finally taking the prospect of UK membership of the EU seriously.”
David Campbell Bannerman, a former MEP who served as deputy leader of UKIP insisted that EU re-entry was “totally unaffordable”. He said: “We would be mad to rejoin and anyone trying to rejoin should be prosecuted for misconduct in public office.”
A Government spokesperson said: “These figures are completely speculative. We are building an ambitious, close relationship with the EU that will strengthen our economy and create more opportunities for young people and communities across the whole UK.”