Bid to slow cuts to solar panel tariff is defeated

Liberal Democrat Cllr John Whitehouse had wanted the Tory-run authority to join others lobbying to postpone cuts to the subsidy panel owners are paid for power they generate.

The Government cut the tariff from 42p per kWh to 21p from December 12, 11 days before its consultation was due to end, claiming the numbers installing panels had been so high it would run out of money.

Friends of the Earth and two solar panel firms successfully challenged the cut in the High Court before Christmas. Cllr Whitehouse (Kenilworth Abbey) said it had been brought in too fast.

Describing the “catastrophic” change as bad government, Cllr Whitehouse said local government projects around the UK would have to be abandoned and thousands of jobs could be lost.

He said: “To get six weeks’ notice of a 50 per cent cut in tariffs when there are schemes on the drawing board is bad for business planning and has caused consternation across the solar industry, which is one of the few success stories of recent years.”

Cllr Alan Cockburn (Con, Kenilworth St Johns) agreed, saying the hasty measure would destroy trust between the public and private sector, but other Tories opposed the motion.

Cllr Peter Butlin (Con, Admirals) said 42p was “money for old rope” when power cost 16p from the National Grid and the production cost was five or six pence. He said the cost of subsidies to energy bills would result in 400,000 people going into energy poverty, calling the scheme “a cross-party agreement to squander money”.

And while Cllr Chris Saint (Con, Tredington) said he would listen to those who said the cuts were too fast, he called the present tariff “almost suicidal”.

Speaking as the council’s ‘climate change champion’, Cllr John Appleton (Con, Southam) said: “The Government isn’t proposing cancellation but a reduction. People installing these systems are reducing their carbon footprint to the benefit of everybody.”