Director of RenewableUK’s Welsh office, David Clubb, has responeded to UK Prime Minister David Cameron’s comments that appear to indicate he is edging away from supporting the Swansea Bay tidal lagoon project.
In response to comments Cameron made while giving evidence to the House of Commons Liaison Committee regarding the potential use of tidal energy from Bristol Channel, David Clubb said:
“Mr Cameron is missing the point here. The Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon Power project is a fantastic opportunity for the UK to lead the world in creating clean energy for many decades to come and he should be doing everything he can to support it, not backtracking on his commitments.
“Any technology is expensive at first and every form of energy generation has needs subsidies to get it off the ground – indeed, look at the large subsidies nuclear still receives.
“The Swansea Bay project is a world first and Mr Cameron’s comments this week essentially say we will never pay for first mover advantage, and thus never have those industries in the UK. It is short sighted in the extreme.”