Government unveils Great British Energy Bill

Tamara Birch, senior writer, The Eco Experts
Written By
Maximilian Schwerdtfeger
Reviewed By
Updated on 11 October 2024
  • Labour has pushed ahead with plans to launch Great British Energy
  • It will be backed up with £8.3bn of taxpayer funds
  • The company will be headquartered in Scotland
Sir Keir Starmer made Great British Energy a key pre-election pledge

Sir Keir Starmer made Great British Energy a key pre-election pledge

The government has unveiled a Bill to launch Great British Energy (GBE), a new national energy company designed to invest in renewable sources and technology , as part of its strategy to get the UK to net zero emissions and cut energy bills. 

Announced during the King’s Speech on 17 July, GBE will be backed by £8.3bn and will work with the private sector to “develop, own and operate energy projects”.

The government used the speech to say that GBE will “help us take back control of the country’s energy, achieve energy independence, create new jobs, save money for households and tackle climate change”.

The company’s budget will be used to “facilitate, encourage and participate in the production, distribution, storage and supply of clean energy”.

It will also help reduce greenhouse gas emissions produced by fossil fuels, as well as any measures that will speed up the UK’s green transition. 

The launch of GBE, which will be headquartered in Scotland, would be the first time the government has been a direct participant in the energy market since the late 1980s, when the electricity industry and British Gas were privatised, as reported by The Guardian.

The GBE Bill was announced as part of the King’s Speech on Wednesday, alongside vape bans and smoking age restrictions, re-nationalising train networks and granting local authorities more powers over transport. 

Launching GBE was one of prime minister Sir Keir Starmer’s major pre-election promises. 

The King’s Speech: Green highlights

The government has put a big emphasis on sustainability in its first King’s Speech, which should come as no surprise as bills and energy independence dominated the general election, an election that Labour won so resoundingly.

The King’s Speech is only an outline of what the government plans to do by way of new legislation and the Bills will be fleshed or even changed out when they go through the parliamentary process.

“My Government recognises the urgency of the global climate challenge and the new job opportunities that can come from leading the development of the technologies of the future,” the King’s Speech read.

“It is committed to a clean energy transition which will lower energy bills for consumers over time.”

Great British Energy

As already outlined, Great British Energy is the headline green policy, and the government hopes it will cut energy bills and help make the UK energy independent. It is also one part of the strategy to make the UK the green finance capital of the world, for which the government will work closely with private investors.

Transport and infrastructure

Transport will also play a big part of the government’s long term ambition to get the country to net zero. In the King’s Speech, bills for sustainable aviation fuel production and to bring the railways into public hands, as well as to improve the UK’s water by strengthening the powers of water regulators.

What was missing from the King’s Speech?

A notable omission was the petrol and diesel sales ban, a pre-election promise to bring forward a ban on Internal Combustion Engine cars to 2030 from its current date of 2035. This has made Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders to call for “urgent action” to implement the transition to electric cars.

However, it is expected that Rachel Reeves, Chancellor of the Exchequer, will announce a 2030 ban in her first budget in the Autumn.

Written by

Tamara Birch, senior writer, The Eco Experts

Tamara is a London-based journalist and has written about environmental topics for more than four years. This includes advising small business owners on cost-effective ways, like solar panels and energy-efficient products, to help them become more sustainable.

She has used her journalist and research skills to become highly knowledgeable on sustainable initiatives, issues, and solutions to help consumers do their bit for the environment - all while reducing monthly costs.

In addition to adopting sustainable practices in her personal life, Tamara has worked in the retail B2B space to help independent retailers think about their environmental choices and how they can help improve their business. She now uses this knowledge to help consumers do the same.

Her passion for sustainability and eco-friendly solutions stems from a long obsession with nature and animals and ensuring they feel looked after. In her free time, Tamara enjoys reading fantasy novels, visiting the gym, and going on long walks in new areas.

You can get in touch with Tamara via email at tamara.birch@mvfglobal.com.

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Reviewed By

Maximilian Schwerdtfeger

Max joined The Eco Experts as content manager in February 2024. He has written about sustainability issues across numerous industries, including maritime, supply chain, finance, mining, and retail. He has also written extensively for consumer titles like City AM, The Morning Star, and The Daily Express. In 2020, he covered in detail the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) legislation on sulphur emissions and its effects on the global container shipping market as online editor of Port Technology International. He also explored the initiatives major container ports and terminals have launched in order to ship vital goods across the world without polluting the environment. Since then, he has reported heavily on the impact made by environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices on the supply chain of minerals, with a particular focus on rare earth mining in Africa. As part of this, in 2022 Max visited mines and ports in Angola to hone in on the challenges being faced by one of the world’s biggest producers of rare earth minerals. His most recent sustainability-related work came much closer to home, as he investigated the eco-challenges faced by independent retailers in the UK, specifically looking at how they can cut emissions and continue to thrive. Max lives in South London and is an avid reader of books on modern history and ghost stories. He has also recently learned to play the game Mahjong and takes every opportunity to do so. He is also yet to find a sport he doesn’t enjoy watching.

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