THE UK Government should relax its clampdown on onshore wind subsidies, according to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.
Tory ministers have scrapped subsidies to wind farms following complaints about their impact on the countryside.
But in a letter to David Cameron, Sturgeon said that as 70 per cent of planned wind farms were set for north of the Border, the cut would disproportionately affect Scotland.
The cut is just one in a series of recent Government measures criticised by environmental campaigners and the renewables industry.
Sturgeon called on the Prime Minister to allow those firms that had spent millions of pounds planning new wind farms in Scotland to qualify for subsidies.
She quoted the CBI, which has urged a grace period for developers whose plans are already in the planning system, and accused Cameron of being “anti-business”.
She said: “Given your party has traditionally prided itself on being supportive of business, it is concerning that you are taking such an anti-business approach on this issue.”
According to figures from industry organisation Scottish Renewables, onshore wind farms in Scotland employed almost 3,400 people in 2013.
The First Minister also warned that the subsidy cuts were undermining the UK’s claims to be a world leader on climate change.
She said: “I wish to stress my concern about the implications of the policy for this year’s crucial UN [climate] talks in Paris. So far this year you have spoken out on climate change, pledging ‘to accelerate the transition to a competitive, energy-efficient low-carbon economy’.
“However, your Government’s decision to cut planned support for renewable energy sets an extremely bad example to other countries, will put at risk Scotland’s renewable energy targets, and also runs counter to your manifesto commitment to cut emissions as cost-effectively as possible.”
Some believe the Government’s new measures on renewables are because they threaten the profits of conventional fossil fuel firms.
Over the past few months, the Treasury has cut onshore wind subsidies, the large and small-scale solar subsidy, the energy efficiency budget, the obligation for new homes to be zero-carbon, the escalating tax on polluting industry; and low vehicle excise duty on energy efficient cars.
Friends of the Earth Scotland urged the Prime Minister to heed Sturgeon’s warnings on wind farm subsidies.
The charity's director Dr Richard Dixon said: “Nicola Sturgeon’s welcome intervention makes the sensible suggestion that wind farms already in the planning system should be allowed to get UK Government support if they get planning permission.”
He continued: “There is no reason that subsidy policies could not be different north and south of the Border to acknowledge the different resources and priorities in Scotland. Funding renewables in Scotland is much better value for money than funding nuclear in England.”
“The UK Government says it wants to be a leader at the Paris climate talks at the end of the year. It is very hard to see how this claim can have a shred of credibility when they continue to slash investment in green energy.”
A spokesman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change said: “The top priority is to combat climate change in the most cost-effective way.
“The Government is determined to help industries and technologies stand on their own two feet, not encourage a reliance on public subsidies.”
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