Angela Knight, former chief executive at Energy UK has claimed that Chancellor Rachel Reeves will “bend the rules” to push a climate agenda.
The Government has pledged nearly £22billion in funding for carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects in Merseyside and Teesside despite claiming that they are trying to fill a £22billion black hole left by the previous Government.
The funding will support two “carbon capture clusters” focused on capturing emissions from energy, industry, and hydrogen production.
Officials expect the projects to remove 8.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually, with the first carbon dioxide being stored from 2028.
Angela Knight said that she will “bend the rules”
GB News
Speaking to GB News, Knight said: “This tells you the Rachel Reeves is going to bend the rules or change the rules on borrowing.
“Otherwise you can’t go and borrow this money if you’ve got a black hole, which you’re trying to fill with cutting off winter fuel allowances and other things.”
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She added: “I do support the idea. There’s a lot of ideas around this area which are completely barking mad or hugely, ridiculously expensive. This isn’t one of them.
“This does have some feasibility about it, but it isn’t cheap. There’s nothing in this area at all that is cheap.
“But there are others around the world who are, who have got or are, putting in place carbon capture projects because realistically, we will still have to be burning natural gas and oil.
“We are reducing our reliance on the hydrocarbons. We can’t remove them unless you want to be a country which goes back into the ages in which you don’t have power, you don’t have warmth, and so on.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been warning the UK of the£22 billion blackhole
PA
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced the move alongside Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband.
Starmer claimed it would “reignite our industrial heartlands by investing in the industry of the future”.
The Government’s funding focuses on three projects in Teesside and Merseyside, capturing carbon from hydrogen production, gas power, and energy-from-waste facilities.
The captured carbon will be stored in deep geological formations beneath Liverpool Bay and the North Sea.
Angela Knight said that she supports the Carbon Capture Scheme
GB News
Officials expect the investment to attract £8 billion in private funding, create 4,000 direct jobs, and support 50,000 jobs long-term.
The project aims to pave the way for the UK’s first large-scale hydrogen production plant and assist the oil and gas industry’s transition to clean energy.
However, some environmental groups have criticised the investment, arguing it could extend the lifespan of fossil fuel industries.