Offshore Wind Generation (North Wales)

Chris Ruane Excerpts

Wednesday 24th October 2012 Westminster Hall

[Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd) (Lab)]

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Ynys Môn (Albert Owen) on securing the debate. The six north Wales Labour Members who have been in attendance today met six weeks ago and decided to put in for the debate en bloc. My hon. Friend secured it, and we have come out in force today to support him. [Interruption.] As he correctly points out, it is his idea and his debate, so we are present to support him.

About nine years ago, I was approached by RWE npower renewables and asked to support the erection of 30 turbines off the coast of my constituency—the North Hoyle turbines. I looked at the situation, listened with care and agreed to support that. The company listened carefully. I asked it how many jobs would be created, and it said only seven in the first instance, most of which would be filled from Scotland, which has deep-water expertise. I asked it to connect with the coastal communities by putting together a fund. It was probably going to do that anyway, but it did so with style. It allocated £30,000 a year to Prestatyn and £30,000 a year to Rhyl. When the Rhyl Flats turbines were switched on just five or six miles down the coast, I again asked for funding for Rhyl and Prestatyn, but it said no. When I asked again, it said yes to Rhyl with an extra £15,000, but no to Prestatyn.

The company has connected with those coastal communities through those funds. The fund proposed for Gwynt y Môr is £19 million over 25 years, which is considerable. We live in a convergence area that was a European objective 1 area. I am asking RWE npower renewables whether that £19 million can be clean money to multiply up to perhaps £100 million as match funding for European structural funds. That could have a huge impact on the coastal communities, many of which, such as Rhyl, Prestatyn and Colwyn Bay, are suffering. The insolvency figures for last year came out on Monday, and five of the top towns for insolvency in the UK are seaside towns, two of them in my constituency. An investment of tens of millions of pounds over the next 10 or 20 years could have a big impact in those coastal communities. It has had an impact so far, and it will have an impact in future.

I turn to the politics. When I switched on the North Hoyle lights about six years ago, the Prime Minister, who was then Leader of the Opposition, was in north Wales at Llandudno for the Tory party conference. He referred to the turbines and called them giant bird blenders. We all know that he then went on to hug a husky at the north pole and said how important environmental credentials are for the Conservative party, but he was facing both ways at the same time, and that was echoed by his Tory Welsh Assembly Members. The Tory AM for Aberconwy, Janet Finch-Saunders, said that the Gwynt y Môr project will damage tourism in north Wales and is viable only with massive Government subsidies for renewables.

Political careers were built in north Wales on the back of opposition to offshore wind farms off the coast of north Wales, and it is interesting that the hon. Member for Aberconwy (Guto Bebb) and the Secretary of State for Wales, the right hon. Member for Clwyd West (Mr Jones) are not here today, because I believe that opposition to wind farms helped to build their political careers. That opposition continues at a high political level. The Chancellor referred to supporters of renewables as the “environmental Taliban”, comparing us with Taliban terrorists who shoot 14-year-old girls in the head for standing up for education. That is the level of debate, the terminology and the lexicon that is being used by leaders of the Tory party, and there is no escaping that. However, I make an honourable exception of councillors in Prestatyn in my constituency, many of whom were Conservatives, but stood up, supported wind farms, and went against the flow, and they should be commended for supporting the North Hoyle and Rhyl Flats wind farms.

I move on to a less party political point. Offshore wind farms will make a big difference in my community to tourism and job creation. If RWE npower renewables is tied in with our further education and higher education sectors in north Wales, that could make north Wales a world base for renewable energy, and we could exploit our expertise around the world. When countries are considering offshore renewables, north Wales and the north-west could be the first port of call.

The vision for the future is exciting. The finance is available from the green investment bank and 20 other independent and private sector banks and from the European Investment Bank. The future is bright for renewables in north Wales, and I ask the Minister to respond positively and to go against his leadership and support Labour MPs in north Wales; and I ask MPs generally to ensure that renewable offshore wind is a key component of the British energy market.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Hayes]

How could I resist such an invitation?

[Chris Ruane]

Will the Minister call in at Rhyl on his way up there?

[Mr Hayes]

For a sumptuous Welsh lunch, which the hon. Gentleman will no doubt provide? Of course.

Schumacher said:

“Wisdom demands a new orientation of science and technology toward the organic, the gentle, the elegant and beautiful.”

I associate myself with those remarks. We need to understand the impact of industrial structures in rural communities, and to that end we need a different settlement on community ownership, community engagement and community benefit. However, let me be clear. The Government are firmly committed to the development of UK offshore wind resources. We understand their significance and value. The hon. Member for Ynys Môn has done us all a service in allowing this Chamber to consider that value and that significance in this short debate.