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Politics


LABOUR SET TO FINALLY ABANDON £28 BILLION GREEN INVESTMENT PROMISE IN MAJOR
U-TURN

IT COMES JUST DAYS AFTER SIR KEIR SAID £28BN OF ANNUAL INVESTMENT IN GREEN
INITIATIVES WAS “DESPERATELY NEEDED”

Kate Devlin,Archie Mitchell
1 hour ago
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Sir Keir Starmer is facing mounting criticism within his party as he prepares to
abandon Labour’s policy to spend £28bn a year on environmental projects in a
major U-turn.

The Labour leader is expected to confirm that the pledge is being scaled back,
blaming a more difficult economic outlook since it was first unveiled in 2021.




It comes just days after Sir Keir said £28bn of annual investment in green
initiatives was “desperately needed” and that his support for the spending plan
was “unwavering”. Labour sources said the party will instead focus on
previously-announced plans to wean Britain off fossil fuels.



But Sir Keir faced an immediate backlash, with former shadow minister Barry
Gardiner calling the decision “economically illiterate, environmentally
irresponsible and politically jejune”.



Former adviser to Tony Blair John McTernan said it was “probably the most stupid
decision the Labour Party's made”.



A member of Sir Keir’s shadow cabinet told the Independent the U-turn had been
“handled dreadfully” and now risked distracting from two potentially disastrous
by-elections for Rishi Sunak next week.



News of the announcement came just after the Greater Manchester mayor Andy
Burnham and the Liverpool city region mayor Steve Rotheram warned the party to
“stick to the pledge” around green transition.



Sir Keir Starmer said this week that the £28 billion-a-year green spending plan
was ‘desperately needed’

(PA Wire)

Last year, Labour adjusted its original plan by saying the £28 billion-a-year
spending target would likely be met in the second half of a first parliament,
rather than immediately, if the party wins the next election.



The party has since insisted the pledge is subject to its fiscal rules, which
include getting debt falling as a percentage of GDP, as it seeks to reassure
voters it would handle the economy responsibly in government.

Confusion over the future of the policy has grown in recent weeks as some senior
figures refused to refer to the £28 billion-a-year figure, while party leader
Sir Keir continued to do so as recently as Tuesday.



Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has repeatedly declined to recommit to the
spending pledge, instead highlighting the need for “iron discipline” with the
public finances.

Labour has come under pressure as the Conservatives have increasing seized on
the figure as a key attack line, claiming Labour would have to raise taxes to
meet the “unfunded spending spree”.



Barry Gardiner said the decision was ‘economically illiterate, environmentally
irresponsible and politically jejune’

(PA Media)

Mr Gardiner, who served in Jeremy Corbyn’s shadow cabinet, told BBC Radio 4’s
Today programme that Britain needed to follow US President Joe Biden, whose
inflation reduction act inspired the spending pledge.



He said Sir Keir’s u-turn was “environmentally irresponsible” at a time when
climate change is leading to increasingly destructive natural disasters.

And Mr Gardiner warned Labour now risked “being so bland that you stand for
nothing”. “The government will then write your policies for you, and will say,
“you see Labour’s not telling you what they what they’re going to do. It’s going
to be this it’s going to be that”.

“They can paint their own picture, so I think politically, it’s strategically
incompetent.”

Other MPs on the left of the party also criticised the plan.

Bell Ribeiro-Addy, the MP for Streatham in London, said that “now is not the
time to scale back our green industrial strategy”.

Mick Whitley, the MP for Birkenhead, tweeted: “The dumping of the Green
Prosperity Plan casts major doubt on whether Labour can provide the leadership
to meet the challenges of a fast warming world. This latest u-turn will leave
many voters asking what, if anything, our party stands for. Dangerously
short-sighted politics.”



The Unite union, a major donor to Labour, said the “retreat” would “confirm
workers’ scepticism of the endless promises of jam tomorrow and it will be
‘alright on the night’ rhetoric on the green transition”.

General secretary Sharon Graham said: “There is a catastrophic crisis of
investment in Britain’s economic infrastructure. Britain needs more not less
investment.”

But Labour received surprising support from David Cameron’s former spin doctor
Craig Oliver, who said the move would leave “glum faces” inside No10 and CCHQ
today, following the loss of what “was going to be a major Conservatives attack
line for months” in the run up to the general election.

For his part, Mr Sunak accused Labour of “trying to wriggle out” of the £28bn
green pledge and said the move demonstrated his argument that Sir Keir “U-turns
on major things, he can’t say what he would do differently because he doesn’t
have a plan.”



Jeremy Hunt said Labour’s only economic plan is to “copy the Conservatives”.



John McTernan said the decision was ‘very disappointing’

(NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Mr McTernan, Sir Tony’s former political secretary, said Labour needed to stick
to the pledge. “Great parties have great causes, and if you don’t have a great
cause, people may want change from this government, sure, but change to what -
what is the change Labour now offers? It is very disappointing.”

The policy was first announced in September 2021 by Ms Reeves.

But Labour has pointed to recent economic turmoil under the Tories, including
Liz Truss’ disastrous mini-budget.

As they attempted to capitalise on the row, Tory staffers stayed up until 1am on
Thursday posting a thread on X of the 311 times Labour has talked about the
£28bn spending commitment, saying it showed “311 reasons you cannot trust a word
Starmer and the Labour Party say”.



Greenpeace slammed Sir Keir’s decision as showing “weak” political, economic and
climate leadership. Head of politics Rebecca Newsom said without the radical
pledge, voters “will start wondering what the Labour party actually stands for”.

The Green Party described the U-turn as a “massive backwards step for the
climate, for the economy and for good quality jobs”.



SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said the U-turn would “destroy Scottish
jobs, harm economic growth and hit families in the pocket by keeping energy
bills high”.



The u-turn comes after the Tories claimed an official Treasury costing suggested
part of the plan – to upgrade insulation for 19 million homes – would cost more
than double the party’s estimate of £6 billion.




MORE ABOUT

LabourRachel ReevesBritainGreen PartyLaura TrottSharon
GrahamUniteTreasuryConservativesScottish


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1/4LABOUR SET TO FINALLY ABANDON £28 BILLION GREEN INVESTMENT PROMISE I


LABOUR SET TO FINALLY ABANDON £28 BILLION GREEN INVESTMENT PROMISE I

Sir Keir Starmer said this week that the £28 billion-a-year green spending plan
was ‘desperately needed’

PA Wire


LABOUR SET TO FINALLY ABANDON £28 BILLION GREEN INVESTMENT PROMISE I

Barry Gardiner said the decision was ‘economically illiterate, environmentally
irresponsible and politically jejune’

PA Media


LABOUR SET TO FINALLY ABANDON £28 BILLION GREEN INVESTMENT PROMISE I

John McTernan said the decision was ‘very disappointing’

NurPhoto via Getty Images


LABOUR SET TO FINALLY ABANDON £28 BILLION GREEN INVESTMENT PROMISE I

Sir Keir Starmer is set to abandon Labour’s policy to spend £28bn a year on
environmental projects

PA
















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