Madame Chairman:
We’ve heard a lot of nonsense today about green jobs.
The fact is that our obsession with renewables is driving up electricity costs, and forcing European citizens into fuel poverty.
Higher energy prices drive energy-intensive industries out of the EU altogether, to more friendly jurisdictions.
Higher energy prices reduce economic growth and increase unemployment. I’ve only seen one formal study on this, in Spain, where every green job created cost 2.2 jobs in the wider economy.
If we really want low-carbon electricity, there is only one solution, and that’s nuclear power. Across Europe, we are starting to talk about new nuclear capacity, and that’s good. If we want to keep the lights on, we have to deliver a nuclear renaissance, and we have to deliver it fast.
Roger Helmer MEP 