Key Takeaways
Nigel Farage, the leader of the UK Reform Party, has set himself and his party apart from all other parties in the UK by questioning their increasingly disastrous energy policies that are rapidly deindustrializing the nation.
He has pointed out that President Trump’s proposals regarding potential tariffs on aluminum and steel would not apply to the UK because it no longer produces aluminum, and its steel industry is almost gone.
Renewable energy in the form of wind and solar has driven energy prices skyward in the UK, threatening industries such as chemicals that remain.
Farage has proposed “windfall profit taxes” on wind and solar energy companies to pay back the enormous subsidies they received at taxpayer expense — similar to windfall profit taxes levied on North Sea oil and gas production by the UK.
Farage thinks the public has been lied to about wind and solar power being cheaper than other forms of energy as they require backup power, so consumers are paying not only for the renewable power but also the power to back them up when wind and sun are unavailable.
According to the leader of the UK Reform Party, Nigel Farage, Trump’s tariffs on aluminum and steel will not hurt Britain very much because its entire aluminum industry is gone, and there is very little steel left. Net-Zero targets are the primary reason for the deindustrialization of Britain because its electricity prices for industry are between five and six times higher than those in America. He calls the slogan that renewables are cheaper a great lie. He says the cost of renewables plus backup must be more than that of backup. The backup is needed because sometimes the wind does not blow, and the sun does not shine. His deputy, Richard Tice, has said, “Net Zero is without question the greatest act of self-harm ever imposed on the nation by the people in Westminster. It’s killing jobs, whether it’s in the car industry, the oil and gas industry, the steel industry, or the chemicals industry, the truth is that decarbonization does mean deindustrialization.”
To correct the problem, Nigel Farage vowed that if elected, he would do away with the disastrous Net-Zero green agenda and place a windfall tax on the so-called renewables sector, which is similar to the windfall profit tax levied on North Sea oil and gas production by ruling parties in the UK. His reform agenda includes scrapping Net Zero policies, making energy prices competitive, and lowering the cost of living for average Britons. He intends to add a windfall tax to solar and wind firms to recoup the massive subsidies they received. Farage asserted that the “endless” subsidies handed out by London to often foreign renewable energy firms had a direct link to the cost of energy soaring in Britain. To subsidize the industry, the UK government has spent around £100 billion ($126 billion) on subsidies for green energy projects, which equates to around £3,500 per household.
In addition to a windfall tax, the Reform party would put an end to farmland being used for green projects, citing its limited quantity. The Reform party would also mandate all energy pylon cables to be put underground as a cost-effective measure that preserves scenic views.
Large-scale battery energy storage systems, often built next to solar farms, would be banned under a Reform government until they can be proven “absolutely safe.” Tice claimed that the renewables sector lacks“responsibility and accountability for the safety standards and regulations” on these storage systems. A fire at the Moss Landing Power Plant in California, one of the world’s largest battery energy storage facilities, contaminated the air, soil, and water in the surrounding areas with heavy metals. According to the New York Times, heavy metals detected in the soil have health implications for the local county’s agriculture industry and the workers who pick the produce.
In the United States, the Democrat-passed climate bill, the Inflation Reduction Act, is providing massive subsidies for wind and solar power and storage batteries, which would not be economical without them, and grants and loans to “clean energy” companies. While subsidies are meant to get new technologies off the ground, wind and solar power have received these subsidies for decades. The Inflation Reduction Act was initially estimated to cost $369 billion but is now expected to run over $1 trillion as the lucrative subsidies are uncapped. Besides these handouts, the Biden administration also placed onerous regulations and efficiency standards on traditional technologies to promote its climate agenda with more wind turbines, solar panels, and electric vehicles. President Trump and his energy team have a massive task to change Biden’s policies and make American energy abundant, affordable, and reliable again.
Conclusion
It looks like the UK’s Reform Party leader, Nigel Farage, will put the United Kingdom first as President Trump is doing for the United States, instituting logical reforms and making the UK energy sector affordable again. Without those reforms, the UK will continue with its high energy prices, increasing the energy poverty of its residents and the deindustrialization of its industries. The Biden administration’s rules and regulations, forcing net zero policies on Americans to fulfill a commitment to the Paris climate accord, raised energy prices for Americans and needlessly spent taxpayer funds on massive energy-related subsidies and “clean energy” grants and loans for firms that are having trouble staying afloat.
