Donald Trump and UKIP's Nigel Farage, source Breitbart. Then UKIP leader Nigel Farage was the only British leader to wholeheartedly support the Trump campaign. Farage travelled to the USA and spoke on Trump's behalf during the election campaign.

UK Energy Companies Terrified of Reform’s Threat to Cancel Green Subsidies

Essay by Eric Worrall

The possibility climate skeptic Nigel Farage could become Prime Minister is sending shockwaves through the British green energy community.

Reform’s anti-renewables stance ‘putting jobs and energy bills at risk’

Industry says party’s threat to strip wind and solar subsidies if it enters power undermines national interest

Jillian Ambrose and Matthew WeaverThu 17 Jul 2025 19.22 AEST

Britain’s green energy industry has accused the Reform UK party of undermining the national interest by threatening to strip public subsidies for wind and solar projects if it comes to power.

Richard Tice, the deputy leader of the party founded by Nigel Farage, added that developers seeking a subsidy contract in the upcoming auction would “do so at your own risk” because the party would “seek to strike down all contracts” if it gained power.

“The political consensus that has sheltered your industry for nearly two decades is fracturing,” Tice said.

James Alexander, the chief executive of the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association, said: “This letter risks putting politics before prosperity by issuing threats to developers in one of the UK’s fastest-growing industries.

“Investors wholeheartedly recognise these long-term investment opportunities. It is a great shame that some politicians would rather attack the sector instead of seizing the huge potential that it offers.”

She [Jess Ralston] added that “ ripping up long-term policies and changing agreed contracts is likely to destroy the UK’s credibility as a solid place to invest” in clean energy, which would make the UK more exposed to spikes in imported gas prices.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/jul/17/reforms-anti-renewables-stance-putting-jobs-and-energy-bills-at-risk

Green investors running for the hills at the slightest hint of subsidy cancellation exposes the falsehood that renewables are competitive and affordable.

Of course we already knew that – even Mad Miliband is throwing in the towel on a pure renewable Net Zero, at least until the magic happens.

That magic would be the operational nuclear FUSION reactor British politicians expect to be operational by 2040. They’ve already begun construction.

Before you ask, while it is true the nuclear fusion economic revival programme was started by the Tories, it has been continued by the Starmer government.

As for Farage, I once had the privilege of a 20 minute one on one conversation with Nigel Farage at an event in London, many years ago. He is the same in person as he is on TV, one of the few senior politicians I’ve met who pass the pub test.

5 20 votes
Article Rating

Discover more from Watts Up With That?

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

48 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
July 20, 2025 10:22 pm

Climate Crusader: Let’s build a fusion reactor!

Physicist: We don’t know how.

Climate Crusader: It will take 15 years, by the time we get there we’ll know how!

Physicist: Well we might know how, and it might be impossible and we cannot start building something now with any assurance that what we build will actually be what we need.

Climate Crusader: Look, I need someone credible to run this project with your kind of resume. Its $10 million per year for fifteen years, are you in or out?

Climate Crusader: Hi, I used to be a Physicist, but saving the world is more important. Let me explain how we’re going to build this fusion reactor….

TBeholder
Reply to  davidmhoffer
July 21, 2025 5:38 am

Well, after the whole “Uncorrected Evidence 39” incident it became clear that the national physics society of the country that invented physics is not entirely in on the worldwide Harvardization of academia. Thus directed corruption, rather than leaving it to natural rot.

July 20, 2025 10:27 pm

Sovereign risk is now paramount in the “renewables” sector. This sector survives on government largesse .

Offshore wind in Australia is crashing before it gets started. Trump has been a big factor in that. A Farage Prime Ministership would heighten the sovereign risk for Australia.

Commercial investments in energy that should take 20 years or more to give a return are now seeking government funds just to do feasibility. No company is prepared to risk their shareholder equity on insane schemes dreamt up by climate mongering fanatics in government and the government class.

The world owes Trump much. His impact and common sense is far reaching.

July 20, 2025 10:36 pm

As much as I’d like to see Reform do well in the next election, I can’t see Farage being Prime Minister.

What Farage is more likely to achieve is giving the Tories a good kick up the backside, hopefully knocking Net Zeros out of them.

I originally thought Badenoch would steer the Tories back in the right direction, but now I’m not so sure.

Reply to  Redge
July 21, 2025 12:58 am

Anyone who has paid attention to farage’s career knows he’s not actually interested in deciding coherent policy or running the country, or doing anything other than promoting himself, collecting expenses, and acquiring another pension. He will crash out before long. I just hope the reform movement is big enough to survive his inevitable abandonment and repudiation of it.

Reply to  Archer
July 21, 2025 2:02 am

Stupid comment of the week from Archer.

Farage has maintained consistent policies over 30 years of politics. Without even being an MP, he forced the Tory government to call a Brexit referendum, and won. He’s now leading the polls by margins never believed would be possible, having only returned to politics a year ago.

The Tories spent 14 years in government with no coherent policies beyond maintaining Blair’s legacy, including the green madness. It was Theresa May who introduced NetZero.

Labour haven’t a clue, which is becoming obvious to even the most hardened leftist’s. There are rabidly left wing, prominent commentators now jumping ship publically on X, openly criticising Starmer who, in the most blatant act of greed and opportunism, decided it would be a fun wheeze to have accommodation, clothing and accoutrements given to him by his gay, wealthy friend, Lord Ali. Not just him, but his wife as well.

Then there’s the latest Afghanistan immigration cover up, a collusion between the Tories and labour to spunk £7Bn on, potentially, half a million+ Afghan migrants into the country when perhaps only 1,000 – 1,2000 deserved any help from the UK. They decided to hide this act of treason from the public with a highly questionable legal instrument.

So carry on doubting Farage, and leave yourself the choices of:

Labour
Tories
Lib Dems
Greens
SDP
Ben Habib (Not really an option, but I thought I would include him for a laugh).

If things continue as they are, the likely outcome is a Reform government with a Tory opposition. Then it will be a race to the right.

Reply to  HotScot
July 21, 2025 5:16 am

Maybe those Afghans will declare the UK to be a caliphate! /s 🙂

Reply to  HotScot
July 22, 2025 7:13 am

Farage has maintained consistent policies over 30 years of politics.

And? Doesn’t change the fact that he’s a grifter and a con.

I watched him take UKIP and turn it into his personal publicity vehicle. I watched him throw out everyone who might challenge his total control of the party, while taking credit for their ideas. I watched him destroy it completely and then cast it aside as “racist” the moment he could no longer use it to further his own wealth and influence.

More recently I watched him attempt to utterly discredit one of his own MPs, Rupert Lowe, after he gave the mildest and least confrontational criticism of some of Farage’s half-baked policies while presenting a few alternatives. He’s now fronting many of those alternatives as his own, after a protracted campaign to destroy Lowe’s career and entire life with smears and insinuations.

The man is not fit to lead an office party, never mind the country. Reform will not govern as long as he is in charge.

gezza1298
Reply to  HotScot
July 23, 2025 8:41 am

Funny how Farage was against a referendum on the EU because in his mind UKIP would take us out of the EU once they became the governing party. Of course we all know how well that went. Call Me Dave felt obliged to try to head off an increase in UKIP vote share by offering a referendum in the hope that at the 2015 election the Liberal government would remain in power and he could renege on his promise because the LimpDumbs would block it. Sadly for him the Tories won and he had no choice but to call the referendum that ended with him flouncing off like the ‘man baby’ he is – H/T to Sarah Vine for that gem.

But for all that, faced with voting for either a red, blue or yellow version of the Uniparty, greenturd nutjobs, Hamas terrorists or Kashmiri rapists it is not a great surprise that Reform is so popular. People feel they could not be worse but I just hope they do not become a repository for failed Tories with their globalist one nation crap.

MarkW
Reply to  Archer
July 21, 2025 5:16 am

He’s not a socialist, therefore he must be stupid and evil. /sarc

Reply to  MarkW
July 22, 2025 7:14 am

I voted UKIP until he blew up the party. I would have voted for Reform if they were standing in my constituency, despite his shitty leadership. You are making wild assumptions based on nothing more than the fact I criticised the man’s consistent self-aggrandisation.

TBeholder
Reply to  Archer
July 21, 2025 5:44 am

Perhaps, but does it matter? It’s in his best interest, as well as pretty much everyone there to stop destruction before it can consume themselves. I mean, grabbing the loot in a burning ship is nice, but there are only so many boats available for evacuation, and after some point risk/benefit ratio start increasing quite fast.

John XB
Reply to  Archer
July 21, 2025 8:38 am

Did you say Farage or Trump? Anyway sounds familiar- heard it somewhere before.

Robert T Evans
Reply to  Archer
July 21, 2025 12:26 pm

You are on your own about that, 100% of people I speakto think the opposite.
The last Tory and labour Governments have done their best to destroy the Uk over the past 35 years. and it will get worse under the present government.
Nigel Farrage and the Reform Party our only hope.

Reply to  Redge
July 21, 2025 1:39 am

What Farage is more likely to achieve is giving the Tories a good kick up the backside

I originally thought Badenoch would steer the Tories back in the right direction, but now I’m not so sure.

Two contradictory statements in one post.

The likely outcome in the next election if Corbyn starts to campaign is a Reform win, with the Tories forming the opposition.

Then it would be a race to the right,

D Sandberg
July 20, 2025 11:03 pm

“Green investors running for the hills at the slightest hint of subsidy cancellation exposes the falsehood that renewables are competitive and affordable”: While all the while exclaiming that wind and solar are now cheaper than fossil fuels. That’s OK, the world has always had snake oil salespersons, and always will. The sad part is the millions of voters across all the nations who fail to see the irony (and conspicuous corruption).

Reply to  D Sandberg
July 20, 2025 11:26 pm

all the while exclaiming that wind and solar are now cheaper than fossil fuels

Of course they are. They’re both free, doncha know?

Just ask Nick…

July 20, 2025 11:24 pm

Come on Nick. Tell us all again how wind and solar are free energy. They obviously don’t require any subsidies, do they?

You’ve been remarkably quiet recently.

Westfieldmike
Reply to  Zig Zag Wanderer
July 20, 2025 11:55 pm

He’s gone for re-programming.

July 21, 2025 12:37 am

undermining the national interest by threatening to strip public subsidies for wind and solar

Undermining national interest? Please explain.

MarkW
Reply to  Mike
July 21, 2025 5:25 am

It’s in the interest of those who run the nation, to keep the subsidies flowing (to them).

Bruce Cobb
July 21, 2025 1:24 am

The “unsinkable” green energy industry scam has apparently struck the iceberg named Trump. Too bad, so sad. Buh-bye.

CD in Wisconsin
July 21, 2025 2:22 am

“The possibility climate skeptic Nigel Farage could become Prime Minister is sending shockwaves through the British green energy community.”

Your last parliamentary elections were last year in 2024, weren’t they?

So, your next parliamentary elections aren’t until 2029 are they not? If so, it seems like there is going to be a long wait before Farage can take the reins of power at No. 10 unless snap elections are called before that.

Here in the U.S., the Green Left must be having fits knowing they are stuck with Trump until January of 2029 (which I don’t have a problem with).

Reply to  CD in Wisconsin
July 21, 2025 3:55 am

It is a long wait but you only have to spend time on Facebook to see the viterol posts everytime one of these companies puts some ads out for their Green Energy. Electricity bills are going up not down when the supposedly deciding Gas price is down not up.

Contract Law in the Uk is common law decided by historic cases, so the Millivolt 20 year contracts are safe, but nothing could stop a future UK Govt imposing a Windfall tax equal to or more than the contract income.

Neil Lock
Reply to  kommando828
July 21, 2025 4:04 am

Yes. It’s not just about stopping paying the subsidies, it’s also about claiming back that proportion (all of it?) which wasn’t used for the benefit of taxpayers.

John XB
Reply to  kommando828
July 21, 2025 8:59 am

Not arguing with you.

A contract can only stand if its provisions are reasonable. Also it depends on what are the “get out” clauses. Farage has accused the Government of defrauding the public. He does seem to have good legal advisors, so maybe he is onto something.

No Parliament can be bound by a previous Parliament.

Idle Eric
Reply to  John XB
July 21, 2025 1:05 pm

Alternatively, taxes exist, they could simply impose windfall taxes of 90%+ of the subsidies, and have much the same effect.

Idle Eric
Reply to  CD in Wisconsin
July 21, 2025 12:54 pm

So, your next parliamentary elections aren’t until 2029 are they not? If so, it seems like there is going to be a long wait before Farage can take the reins of power at No. 10 unless snap elections are called before that.

It takes ~5 years to build a wind/solar farm, and a payback period of more like 20 from the first day of operation, no sane business is going to start a project like that if there’s a strong chance that the subsidies that make the business viable are going to be withdrawn at about the time the project comes on line.

And that’s the point, just by existing Farage poses a threat to the business model of these companies, so they won’t start the projects in the first place.

Reply to  CD in Wisconsin
July 22, 2025 8:02 am

2029 is the latest an election can be held. There’s a not insignificant chance of one being forced earlier, depending on how badly Starmer, Rayner, and Reeves continue to screw things up.

July 21, 2025 3:57 am

From the article: “Industry says party’s threat to strip wind and solar subsidies if it enters power undermines national interest”

Continuing the subsidizing of windmills and industrial solar will lead to the bankruptcy of the UK. That’s not in the national interest.

Windmills and Industrial Solar are not viable unless they get taxpayer subsidies. If they can’t stand on their own, then they should not be the focus of an energy policy.

Building Nuclear fission reactors is the only solution for delusional, hard-headed UK politicians who think CO2 is dangerous and needs to be controlled. Nuclear reactors can supply all the electricity the UK needs, while keeping CO2 from entering the atmosphere, and nuclear reactors can operate at a profit, without taxpayer subsidies.

There’s your solution, Labour. But you won’t take it. Nigel will.

I hear Trump will be visiting the UK in the near future. That ought to be interesting. Some reporter should ask him what he thinks about windmills and industrial solar and the situation in the UK. That would be Real interesting.

John XB
Reply to  Tom Abbott
July 21, 2025 9:03 am

Nuclear Fission is THE most expensive spinning generation. Coal is much, much cheaper and Farage has it in mind to open/reopen coal mines. One of the UK’s biggest spinning generators – Drax – was built on top of a coal mine but now burns wood-chips shipped in from California.

Reply to  John XB
July 22, 2025 2:38 am

Maybe mining technology has moved on so we could exploit coal seams again: at least the attempt to start a new mine for high value coking coal in Cumbria suggests that. But the last mining for coal in the UK was R.J.Budge in an open cast pit that is now exhausted. Thermal coal is probably cheaper from the sources we were using: Colombia, Russia, South Africa with occasional exports from the USA.

July 21, 2025 5:05 am

“That magic would be the operational nuclear FUSION reactor British politicians expect to be operational by 2040. They’ve already begun construction.”

While, they’re at it- I suggest they also build a perpetual motion machine. Should be easy! /s

July 21, 2025 5:11 am

Oh dear, the subsidy-farmers are getting in a flap.

Regarding the UK being more exposed to spikes in imported gas prices, a radical solution might be… for the UK to import less gas and make use of its own resources. Yes – the ‘F’ word.

MarkW
July 21, 2025 5:13 am

The idea that government spending creates jobs, is an idea so stupid and so discredited, that only a socialist could believe in it.

Reply to  MarkW
July 21, 2025 6:36 am

Aw c’mon, Mark. You don’t believe that Lord Keynes was on to something when he suggested that the UK government could stimulate the economy by burying glass bottles filled with Pound notes in abandoned mines and then paying people to dig them up?

Reply to  Frank from NoVA
July 21, 2025 8:53 am

Meanwhile, Señor Milei is performing a real-world experiment on Argentina with Austrian School Economics. So far, the results have been astonishing, with the country running a current account surplus and annual inflation down to small double figures.

Cutting expenditure by the State and abolishing dozens of parasitic ministries leaves more money in the pockets of ordinary citizens, who then recycle it into the real economy. Obvious to anyone but a Western politician.

Reply to  Graemethecat
July 22, 2025 2:41 am

Hopefully it means the economy will be strong enough to mean he doesn’t need aggression against the Falklands as a way to try to secure support.

observa
Reply to  MarkW
July 21, 2025 7:33 am

Well they’ve learned it does facilitate the Long March of all their mates with juicy sinecures in the public circus and plethora of quangos for the purpose.

Ed Zuiderwijk
July 21, 2025 5:20 am

They can only offer the canard, or is it the chestnut, of being exposed to spikes imported gas prices. As if we are not exposed to those now because of.the do-not-drill policies of Mad Ed.

John XB
July 21, 2025 8:36 am

And BP (Beyond Petroleum… vomit) has ditched its green obsession and green CEO.

Old Mike
July 21, 2025 9:25 am

I’m so looking forward to the now inevitable “Bonfire of the Vanities”

Watching the mass media, like the BBC, from the UK there has been a veritable onslaught of climate change crapola since Trump was elected, the fear is palpable.

Incredibly the Green Blob have not yet realized that the curtain has been slowly and quietly pulled aside and they are now fully exposed and coming into the focus to a lot of very angry people. Their publicity blitz is ill-advised.

This will not be a happy ending for them nor for their acolytes, servants and enablers.

Karma is BI***

Bob
July 21, 2025 11:45 am

The fact that these guys are crying about losing their subsidies is proof that wind and solar are unsustainable as a primary energy supplier. Let’s spend our money and resources on that actually work and are affordable, fossil fuel and fission nuclear.

July 21, 2025 2:35 pm

It is a great shame that some politicians would rather attack the sector instead of seizing the huge potential that it offers.

Translation: The taxpayers aren’t at our door with pitchforks and torches yet, so how about we cut a deal – you raise taxes a bit more and we get an even bigger subsidy?

July 22, 2025 2:50 am

Miliband is, unfortunately, not throwing in the towel. He’s doubling down, with aggressive statements about the apocalypse of climate change that far outweigh whatever the cost of net zero in his view. He is getting all the usual suspects to produce “independent” reports to that end. We’ve had the Met Office, the Climate Change Committee, NESO with its Future Energy Scenarios, and more to come. His response is to claim that attacking net zero puts a million jobs at risk and reduces energy security by relying on expensive gas. In short, he lies. He blusters louder the more he is attacked.

Shakespeare had the words for it in the Scottish play (Macbeth):

It is a tale told by an idiot
Full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

Jon-Anders Grannes
July 22, 2025 1:11 pm

The leftists started more than 100 years ago with the proletariat Dictatorship. When that didn’t work in the West they now try with the dictatorship of the environment, nature and climate.But behind the curtain it’s just the same power hungry leftist with its absolute and totalitarian that we had in USSR.