The government is strangling success

This week, at the same time as the UK Government talked about new jobs and growth, Labour forced Energy Minister Greg Barker to the Commons Chamber to expose the reality of the Tory-led Government’s incompetence on business policy.

Labour’s Feed-In Tariff has created jobs since it was introduced by Ed Miliband in April 2010.

It has done so in manufacturing where Sharps in Wrexham have invested £20 million and created 300 jobs early in 2011. It has also created jobs in construction across the country, a sector under enormous pressure.

The Feed- In Tariff is funded not through a direct Government subsidy but from a levy on the bills of energy users. If we are to encourage renewable energy, it requires investment and support. I know of no other policy which has been so successful in creating jobs fast.

But the Tory-led government’s decision to slash the rate of the Feed-In Tariff in little more than six weeks is a devastating blow to the UK’s solar industry and puts jobs and growth at risk. It puts in doubt community projects to develop solar, such as that planned in my own constituency by Wrexham Council.

It shrinks the market for solar in a timescale which makes it impossible for business to plan changes in production and installation. It imposes an additional requirement on consumers to carry out energy saving measures in their home before they can qualify even for the reduced rate of Feed-In Tariff.

The Tory-led Government said it was going to be the greenest government ever. Its announcement on Monday shows that this boast was a sham. It also makes clear that we have a Government which is prepared to reverse growth in a successful sector for reasons that are difficult to fathom.

When Germany’s 10,000 roofs solar project was successful, its Government saw its potential for jobs and growth and made it the 100,000 roofs project. Contrast that with the UK Government which, when it has a success on its hands, strangles it.

If the Government has any sense at all, it will suspend its policy immediately and talk to industry about introducing a stable framework for Feed-In Tariffs for the long-term.