Lord Hain
Main Page: Lord Hain (Labour - Life peer)
Mr Davey
I pay tribute to my hon. Friend, who has championed this investment over a number of years. I saw on my rather wet visit this morning to Hinkley Point C that he is well known on the plant. The fact that he is focusing on the skills agenda, and that the Prime Minister and I met a lot of young apprentices who are looking forward to working at Hinkley Point C for many years, shows the potential for this development—what it means for the community that my hon. Friend represents, the wider economy and the British economy. It is indeed a good day for the British economy.
Mr Peter Hain (Neath) (Lab)
Even accepting the case for Hinkley, why is the Secretary of State not giving in-principle support to the Severn barrage, which would deliver clean green energy at half the price, at a similar strike price, over three to four times the lifespan of Hinkley and with three times the number of jobs? I just do not understand it.
Mr Davey
I am grateful for the right hon. Gentleman’s persistence in this issue. He knows that I have met him and looked at the figures that have been produced by those who want to see a Severn barrage created. It would not be at half the price; it would probably be at double the price; it is extremely expensive. No one would be more delighted than I if we could see tidal power in the Severn. I believe it will come, but the price will have to come down because we must protect the consumer.