𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Kemi Badenoch will today launch an “energy resilience strategy” and denounce Labour’s pursuit of net zero carbon emissions for threatening Britain’s national security and leaving the country exposed at times of crisis.

The Conservatives claim Energy Security Secretary Ed Miliband’s policies will result in the UK shutting down oil and gas production while importing more from Norway. The party says Norway last year drilled 49 exploration wells while “Britain drilled zero for the first time since 1964”. The Tories are concerned by “increasing Britain’s dependence on Chinese energy technology” and warn the “war in Iran will not be the last crisis of this kind”.

Mrs Badenoch’s party will today commit to end the Energy Profits Levy, scrap the ban on new oil and gas licences, and “end all net zero mandates strangling the sector”. The party pledges to “make electricity cheap” and insists its plan would “cut electricity bills by 20%, or £165 for the average household”.

A Badenoch Government would also “double down on secure nuclear power”. It says that while “wind and solar power make us dangerously reliant on Chinese supply chains for cables, batteries, and critical minerals”, fuel for nuclear plants is “imported from our allies in Australia and Canada, then enriched here in Britain”.

A further pledge is to “stop the deindustrialisation of Britain”, with the Tories warning: “Britain lost a third of its oil refineries last year and we have completely lost our ability to make fertiliser or explosives from scratch in Britain – two things vital in the event of conflict – because of sky-high energy prices and the carbon tax”.

Mrs Badenoch said: “Labour’s rush to net zero is deindustrialising our country and forcing up energy bills.

“If we are serious about protecting ourselves from global energy shocks, we need to get rid of carbon tax on bills, start drilling in the North Sea again and invest properly in new nuclear. Energy policy is economic policy.

“With their eco-madness, love of taxes and anti-business policies, it’s no wonder that Labour are failing on energy and the economy. The Conservatives make sure we make bills cheaper, use our natural resources and back the businesses that create economic growth.”

Shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho added: “We are entering a more dangerous world, yet Labour’s energy policy is making Britain weaker.

“Shutting down the North Sea while importing more energy from abroad is industrial self-harm. Britain needs an energy resilience strategy that backs domestic production, makes energy cheap, doubles down on nuclear and makes our country stronger and more secure.”