Offshore Wind

Richard Tice Excerpts

Wednesday 14th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Ed Miliband]

I congratulate my hon. Friend, because he has been a brilliant champion of this industry, and I am so glad about today’s announcement. He is absolutely right. I want developers and all of the businesses involved to hear his message and his question loud and clear: we want to see this development built in Britain, and it is incredibly important that we work with those businesses, and we will, to ensure that it happens.

[Richard Tice (Boston and Skegness) (Reform)]

The Secretary of State has inadvertently misled the House. I have gas-fired power plant developers willing to build and operate at last year’s price of £79 per megawatt-hour. Will the Secretary of State admit that, with inflation, the bids today are some 25% higher than that £79? By the time that capacity is built, the cost will be almost 50% higher than £79 per megawatt-hour.

[Ed Miliband]

With the greatest respect, I trust our analysts in my Department more than I do the hon. Gentleman when it comes to arithmetic. As he is somebody who I think has had an interest in the past in solar panels—

[Richard Tice]

On roofs.

[Ed Miliband]

Ah, so it is all right for him, but just not for anyone else. That tells us a lot.