An overnight report from the grid operators over at the National Energy System Operator has trashed Ed Miliband’s economic case for Net Zero. If you needed any more proof…
The report, which modelled two ‘pathway’ scenarios – Miliband’s ridiculous clean power target versus a ‘holistic’ delayed approach – finds the UK would save £14 billion every year if it ditched Labour’s strict targets. £500 for every household every year, the equivalent of 0.4% of GDP…
NESO operates the entire energy grid and recently pointed out that transmission costs will rise next year by more than £40 per household thanks to disparate renewables serving more of the grid. The grid operator also estimates that if fuel prices fall in line with DESNZ’ projections Miliband’s policies will cost even more. £19 billion per year…
DESNZ will be raging at the impartial findings – it deploys outrageous spin in response to all reports of this kind. Can’t hide this one…
Labour ministers have for months been talking tough about slimming down the civil service, though the Department for Energy, Security and Net Zero appears to have missed the memo. Figures quietly released show that since Red Ed took over the joint, the department has ballooned in headcount and costs…
In July 2024, DESNZ and its agencies employed 8,984 full-time-equivalent (FTE) staff, with an annual staffing cost of £65.6 million. That includes annual salaries, allowances, gold-plated pensions and consultancy fees. By April 2025, that had surged to 12,548 FTEs – an increase of 3,564 roles. The total staffing bill rose to £82 million, a hike of £16.4 million or 25%. A reminder that Reeves promised in March to cut Whitehall running costs by 15%. Running pricey net zero schemes and managing the comms fallout doesn’t come cheap…
Guido hears the Department for Energy, Security, and Net Zero in Whitehall has been left in the dark after a power cut this morning, leaving civil servants trapped in a blackout. No electricity, no water, no Wi-Fi—some of them are even stuck in lifts, and staff can’t get out of the building. A fitting tribute to the department’s supposed expertise in energy management…
Red Ed’s building isn’t the only one hit. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is also caught in the outage. Perhaps there isn’t enough wind to power the place today…
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero splurged over £4 million of taxpayers’ cash to promote its green agenda according to an FOI request sent by the Taxpayers’ Alliance. In the financial year 2023-2024, a whopping £4,356,837 was spent on online adverts for just two eco-campaigns—It All Adds Up and Welcome Home to Energy Efficiency ‘educating’ the public about heat pumps and ‘energy-saving measures’. Naturally most outlets used to promote the climate crusade were on the more ‘progressive’ side of the spectrum…
News outlets include The Guardian Online, Guardian Media, Channel 4, ITV, News UK, while social media platforms Meta, Google, Spotify, LinkedIn, Snapchat, and Pinterest were also deployed to advertise the campaigns. It ain’t cheap going green…
Labour’s latest taxpayer-funded green push has just dropped, with £51.9 million dished out to 25 companies to help cut carbon emissions. In their infinite wisdom the government has decided the best way to save the planet is by handing millions to companies “from beer brewing to baked beans”. Naturally some hefty slices of the pie have gone to billion-dollar giants like Heinz and Nestlé…
Heinz baked beans alone have been handed £2.5 million to “switch its dependence on fossil fuels to heat water, needed to blanch beans and boil spaghetti hoops.” Other “grant-winners” include Beer companies Paul’s Malt and Verdant Brewing company. Nestlé has also received funding to decarbonise a coffee processing site in Staffordshire though the government haven’t spill the beans on how much they’ve been awarded. Nothing screams net zero quite like taxpayers footing the bill to make food and drink greener…
The Institute for Fiscal Studies has carried out a review this morning of the budget. Outgoing director Paul Johnson noted that Miliband has come out on top from yesterday: “It’s DESNZ which is the biggest winner in terms of extra cash.” Everyone is focusing on the NHS while Reeves’ Budget allocates £14.1 billion to DEZNZ next year, a 22% increase in current funding levels…
Johnson made clear that no one should confuse shoving cash into green projects with growth:
“That should help us deliver our climate ambitions, but that’s a different thing from increasing the supply-side capacity of the economy. It’s valuable to produce stuff more cleanly but it’s not the same as investing for growth.”
As Guido revealed during Labour Conference the government is considering spending billions of taxpayer cash on an energy “social tariff” to subsidise rising bills in the net zero transition, which it clandestinely accepts is going to hike energy costs. Meanwhile Reeves yesterday announced a new windfall tax hike on North Sea oil and gas producers to 38% from 35% and an extension of the levy by one year. Fuelling more reliance on foreign imports…
Lucy Powell on LBC, asked by Tom Swarbrick for her reaction to Labour MP Samantha Niblett’s call for a ‘summer of sex’ debate in Parliament: “I personally don’t own any sex toys, but each to their own… I’m not really sure that’s the right place for it, no.”