Ed Miliband has hit out at Nigel Farage, accusing him of spreading “nonsense and lies” by appearing to blame the government’s net zero policy for the crisis in the UK steel industry.
In a strong criticism of his political rivals ahead of next month’s local elections, the energy secretary claimed that both Reform UK and the Conservatives were willing to spread falsehoods to further their “ideological agenda”.
The senior Cabinet minister also warned that if an anti-net zero agenda was followed, it would not only risk “climate breakdown” but “forfeit the clean energy jobs of the future” in Britain.
In an article for The Observer newspaper referring to price rises that began in 2022, the former Labour leader wrote: “Our exposure to fossil fuels meant that, as those markets went into meltdown and prices rocketed, family, business and public finances were devastated.
“The cost of living impacts caused back then still stalk families today.”
Following government action to take control of British Steel from its Chinese owners earlier this month, Reform leader Mr Farage accused Mr Miliband, whom he has repeatedly referred to as “Red Ed”, of pursuing “net-zero lunacy”.
He said efforts to cut carbon emissions have made it harder to source coal required to keep blast furnaces at the company’s crisis-hit Scunthorpe plant running after supplies were shipped from abroad last week.
The government has said that a Cumbrian coal mine, which critics claim it could have used as a domestic source, would not have produced the kind of material that would have been suited to British Steel.
“We’re living through a period of net-zero lunacy, something that the Conservatives signed us up to, wrote into law and believed in, as if somehow it was their new religion,” Mr Farage told a campaign event last week.
“And this, of course, is now being followed by Red Ed, who is the high priest of this who was determined to cover our agricultural land in Chinese slave-labour made farms, solar farms, and to despoil as much of our coastline as he possibly can.”
He has also said the UK should be “self-sufficient in oil” and gas.
Climate groups have argued that the North Sea is an aging basin, meaning its reserves will decline regardless of Government policy as well as being expensive to extract.
Mr Miliband said that both Reform and the Conservatives would “make up any old nonsense and lies to pursue their ideological agenda” and that breaking free of reliance on overseas supplies is also a matter of “national security”.
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer is expected to double down on his government’s commitment to clean power at an International Energy Agency conference this week in London.
Meanwhile, Mr Farage, who wants to abandon the commitment to achieving net zero by 2050, told The Sun on Sunday newspaper that the policy could become “the new Brexit”.
“This could be the next Brexit – where Parliament is so hopelessly out of touch with the country,” he said.
Since becoming Tory leader, Kemi Badenoch has also cast doubt on the 2050 target previously passed by her own party, saying she believes it is “impossible” without a “serious drop in living standards or by bankrupting us”.
MPs passed an emergency law last week allowing ministers to take control of British Steel to prevent the closure of its blast furnaces and potential widespread job losses after talks with its owners, Jingye, broke down.
Labour has stepped up its attacks on Reform in the run-up to the local elections amid opinion poll momentum for the right-wing party, which returned just five MPs at the general election last year and now has four.
Votes for a total of 1,641 council seats across 23 authorities in England will take place on 1 May.
