Climate expert Chris Stark has been newly appointed to lead the UK clean energy taskforce.
He is expected to lead a "mission control centre" on clean energy, which will work with energy companies and regulators towards the goal of clean and cheaper power by 2030. According to this model, ministers will focus on tackling five of the biggest challenges facing the country, one of which is clean energy.
Stark stated that "tackling the climate crisis and accelerating the transition to clean power is the country’s biggest challenge, and its greatest opportunity. By taking action now, we can put the UK at the forefront of the global race to net zero."
Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, said: "Years of underinvestment has left our country suffering energy insecurity, with working people paying the price through their energy bills and a cost-of-living crisis. That cannot happen again.
“This new mission control centre, benefiting from the expertise and experience of Chris Stark’s leadership and bringing together the brightest and best in the national interest, will have a laser-like focus on delivering our mission of clean power by 2030."
Before this role, Stark has governed the UK’s Climate Change Committee (CCC). During this time, he advised a UK net zero target for greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, which is now in law.
Shaun Spiers, executive director of the Green Alliance thinktank, believes the appointment will help Labour attract much-needed international investment for its plans. "This shows the government is ambitious and serious about delivering on its clean energy promises, and is really reassuring," he said. "It’s been a very good few days [since the election] in action from Labour showing they want to get things done quickly."
Reforms to the UK’s planning system have been a focus so far, including the lifting of an effective ban on onshore wind turbines in England, but Spiers said the government would have to look across a much wider range of issues to be successful in decarbonising electricity by 2030. "Planning is important, but it’s not the whole problem – grid connectivity is key, and there’s a need to build supply chains [for green equipment], building up skills, looking at the cost of borrowing, and attracting international investment. The appointment of Chris Stark will help with all of that."
