‘Co-operation and co-ordination’ needed across ‘four nations’ to meet clean energy targets

Greater collaboration between the devolved nations will be critical to meeting the UK’s clean energy targets by 2030, says a new report from the Institute of Public Policy Research.

The report, Everything Everywhere all at Once, finds that Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland  are pivotal for the transition to renewable energy, and says that all the levers of central and devolved governments will need to work more closely together.

Key analysis from the report shows that:

• 95% of onshore and 30% of offshore wind projects in the pipeline are in devolved nations.
• Both the UK government and the devolved governments share challenges related to not having enough resources in their planning systems.
• Scotland’s vast land and sea areas mean it holds a large share of the projects needed to achieve the UK’s Clean Power Target. But to ensure fairness and a strong energy system, green growth needs to happen across the UK.

The report says ‘unprecedented co-operation and co-ordination’ are needed across all regions of the UK.

The report’s co-author, Josh Emden, a senior research fellow at IPPR, said:

“The energy system does not stop at the borders of countries and achieving a clean power system by 2030 will require unprecedented coordination across the UK’s nations. There are positive early signs of more collaboration between all four nations. To accelerate wind deployment and maximise local economic benefits, this will need to continue across both reserved issues like support for ports, grid upgrades and local manufacturing, and devolved issues like planning and skills policy.”

Co-author, Dave Hawkey, senior research fellow at IPPR Scotland, said:

“Scotland’s leadership in onshore wind deployment offers valuable lessons for other nations. It’s crucial we adopt a unified approach to ensure equitable development and maximise benefits for all regions.”

There are several recommendations including:

• Better planning and skill-building: Strengthen national and local planning, include renewable energy training in schools and colleges, and develop a workforce plan for offshore wind. This plan should detail needed skills and the training each nation will provide to create good jobs for new and retraining workers.
• Investing in infrastructure and manufacturing: Introducing capital grants and a long-term support mechanism for port infrastructure upgrades and domestic wind manufacturing, creating a nationally owned fleet of ships to support offshore wind projects and ensuring the British Jobs Bonus delivers high-quality local jobs in the wind supply chain.
• Involving the public: Using programmes like citizens’ juries to involve communities and build support for renewable energy projects and upgrades to the energy grid.

Download the full report from the IPPR website.