Dame Diana Johnson argued ‘industry will not invest if they don’t think there is a long-term future for clean energy and for net zero’
A Hull MP has warned Luke Campbell that the Humber area risks missing out on £30 billion of investment if businesses are not confident that future governments will support green energy initiatives. Dame Diana Johnson (Hull North and Cottingham) and the Mayor of Hull and East Yorkshire both appeared on the BBC’s Politics North on Sunday (October 19) where the topic of renewable investment was raised.
Since being elected as the region’s Mayor in May, Mr Campbell’s stance on the renewable sector has piqued the interest of many. The interest in his renewable views is founded in a perceived conflict between the interests of the Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority (HEYCA), which as Mayor he heads, and his party, Reform UK.
While it is Reform UK policy to scrap net zero policies, one of HEYCA’s four principles is to “deliver a sustainable future through clean energy generation, sustainable development, climate adaptation and resilience, and a strategic approach to harnessing our natural capital asset”. This has led to Mr Campbell being asked by both politicians and the public to explain how he is to balance these interests.
Mr Campbell recently sought to clarify his position by stating: “I am committed to creating high-skilled, well-paying jobs for people in Hull and East Yorkshire. My focus is on backing industries we already know deliver for our region, but we need to seize opportunities to attract new investment to deliver growth.” However, he followed this up by arguing “net zero will not deliver lower energy bills or economic prosperity”.
When asked about the green industry on the BBC TV show, Mr Campbell said: “I’m here for the region so if it created jobs for people in this region, I’m all for it.” Despite this, the Mayor also stated that he does not believe “there is an argument to be had” between himself the leaders of Reform UK such as Nigel Farage and Richard Tice who have repeatedly denounced net zero initiatives.
However, Labour MP Dame Diana asserted her view that there is a debate to be had between Mr Campbell and his party, and therefore between the interests of the region and Reform UK. She said: “Industry will not invest if they don’t think there is a long-term future for clean energy and for net zero.” She added: “What I know is that, in the Humber, there is about £30 billion worth of money waiting to be invested into clean energy, into carbon capture, into extending off-shore wind. All of these things need businesses to be confident that whichever government its going to be in the future are going to support them.”
“That’s the problem, I think, with Nigel Farage saying these things and you saying what you’re saying locally,” the MP said to Mr Campbell. “There’s a problem there for business because who do they believe?”
In response, Mr Campbell said that he has not seen a decline in green energy investments into the region since he took office. “I’m sitting down with investors that are talking about investing billions There’s no decline and there’s no one holding back,” he said.
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