from Sunday Herald, 29 June 2014
A leading group of 16 academics and experts has made a powerful plea for Scotland to have much more control over its energy policy to escape Westminster’s backing for “bankrupt” nuclear power.
Energy specialists from universities in Aberdeen, St Andrews, Edinburgh, Manchester, Cardiff and London have written a joint letter to the Sunday Herald arguing that Scotland should gain control over “a large portion” of the financial incentives for renewables energy schemes like wind power.
They are also urging the establishment of a Scottish energy regulator to help renewables by encouraging investment in local electricity grids. They condemn the plans for more energy devolution by Labour, LibDem and Conservative parties as “feeble”.
But they say that the changes they are advocating can be made either under independence or increased devolution. “Scotland needs greater energy powers to escape from English advocacy of economically and politically bankrupt nuclear power and to counteract declining support from the UK government for Scottish priorities for renewable energy,” they argue (full letter below).
Their intervention has been enthusiastically welcomed by the Scottish government. “This is a devastating critique of UK energy policy from leading energy academics which blows a huge hole in the UK government’s energy policy,” said the energy minister, Fergus Ewing MSP.
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