Guido revealed earlier in the month that jet-loving Miliband flew to New Delhi on a vanity trip at a cost of £17,159 for flights alone. He’s outdone himself again..
A request fired by Guido’s FoI unit has discovered that Miliband’s vaunted trip to China to launch “formal energy and climate discussions and demonstrate global climate leadership” cost a whopping £32,844. Business class for the whole team…
China accounted for 31% of total global carbon emissions in 2023. Miliband took his three-member team and two other officials with him. They stayed at the Kerry Hotel in Beijing, a five-star establishment for which they paid £806.20 for two three-night stays. UK media has previously raised spying concerns as to the Kerry centre in Beijing’s CBD after “upgrades” were made to internet systems some years ago. Miliband’s crew spent the rest of the time at the Embassy in Beijing…
In yet another blow to Red Ed, the UK’s largest oil and gas producer Harbour Energy has said it expects to slash a further 250 jobs in Aberdeen, after already cutting 350 in 2023. That’s around 25% of its workforce. Ironically where GB Energy’s headquarters are…
The firm’s laying the blame squarely at the government’s doorstep, slamming Labour’s beefed-up windfall tax – a whopping 78% – and red tape driving away investment in the name of net zero. The firm also says it’s reviewing its carbon capture project after government delays. Green dream ‘doomed to fail‘, anyone?
Harbour Energy’s managing director Scott Barr said the firm was launching a review into its UK operations, saying:
“The review is unfortunately necessary to align staffing levels with lower levels of investment, due mainly to the government’s ongoing punitive fiscal position and a challenging regulatory environment. We are also reviewing the resourcing required to support our Viking carbon capture and storage project, where progress beyond front-end engineering design and the recent securing of a Development Consent Order has been hindered by repeated delays to the Government’s Track 2 process.”
Meanwhile Ørsted has pulled out of a huge wind farm project in the UK citing high costs. A reminder that only in January Britain was on the brink of blackouts…
Co-conspirators may remember Ed Miliband’s bizarre trip to New Delhi back in February. It received almost no UK press attention whatsoever…
Guido did catch Miliband saying “the UK is a proud oil and gas producer” at a panel before rushing off without taking questions. Something that miraculously didn’t make it into the joint diplomatic statement…
Guido’s FoI Unit sought the cost of the jaunt. The taxpayer bill for flights alone totted up to £17,159 – Miliband brought five officials with him, only one of whom took a premium economy ticket. The rest of Ed’s crew flew business class…
In fairness to the Justice Secretary, when she took her Civil Service staff with her to Texas this year she shoved them in economy. Miliband, who loves flying from Heathrow, has no such compunction…
Latest research from the Renewable Energy Foundation won’t pour any cold water over Labour’s civil war on net zero. According to the study, subsidies for renewable energy sources such as solar power and wind farms have added around £280 to household energy bills a year. The research shows that from 2002-2024, renewable electricity subsidy schemes have amounted to around £220 billion. It finds green energy subsidies now account for about 40% of the total cost of electricity supply in the UK…
John Constable, REF’s director, said: “Renewables subsidies are now costing £25.8 billion per year – or over £900 per household annually – about one third of which, £280, will hit the average domestic electricity bill directly.” The rest impacts households through general cost of living increases. The report concludes:
“There can be little doubt that renewable electricity subsidies are a significant factor in the cost of living crisis and are very likely to be an important element underlying the weak growth in productivity in the UK economy since the financial crisis of 2008.”
Meanwhile, Ed Miliband still can’t say whether energy bills will come down for households by making the UK a ‘green energy superpower’ – Labour’s promise to bring down bills by £300 has already gone out the window. Unhelpful for Red Ed’s shaky position…
Following a chaotic day inside Downing Street sparked by Tony Blair’s brutal broadside on net zero, YouGov has dropped a timely poll asking if the public if they think net zero is – as Blair put it – doomed to fail. The overwhelming majority agree with the former PM…
Out of over 5,300 Britons, a whopping 74% think the UK will either ‘definitely’ or’ probably’ fail to reach net zero by 2050 – with 70% of Labour voters agreeing it’s unlikely. Just 11% think the UK will ‘probably succeed’, while a pitiful 1% believe the UK will ‘definitely’ achieve it. Red Ed is aiming for 95% clean energy by 2030 – a full 20 years earlier than the target most people already think is out of reach. No wonder Number 10 have refused to guarantee his survival…
The post-PMQs briefing between hacks and Starmer’s spokesman has been dominated by the ongoing chaos over Tony Blair’s intervention into the net zero debate. Something Badenoch chose not to mention during the actual session…
Starmer’s spokesman says it’s “good to see there is broad support for government’s approach to net zero” and that the TBI “has backed the government’s approach.” Broad being the operative word there…
The government is having to point to the bits of policy that Blair agrees with – small modular reactors and carbon capture and storage. After Blair trashed COP summits as the “apogee” of “irrational” debate around net zero Starmer’s spokesman claims the PM supports the summits and that “international collaboration absolutely critical” but he is “always open to ideas.” Eesh…
When asked if he had full confidence in Miliband the spokesman said the energy secretary is doing “a fantastic job in winning the global race for the jobs of the future” and the PM has “full confidence in him.” When asked to guarantee – like for Reeves and Lammy – that Ed would be in post at the next election, none came. Curious…
Red Wall Labour backbencher Jonathan Brash told GB News that Starmer should resign:
“I’m completely fed up about it, and I think it’s got to the point now where I genuinely think that, as far as the Prime Minister is concerned, it’s not a case of if, it’s when.”
