During the second reading of the Great British Energy Bill in the House of Commons, the Energy Secretary stated that Great British Energy will not transform into EDF overnight.
Ed Miliband emphasised that British people should have the right to own national resources, similar to how it is managed in Denmark, France and Norway.
Mr Miliband also mentioned that Great British Energy will focus on investing in affordable, domestically controlled energy.
Ed Miliband said: “Even before this Bill, we already had widespread state ownership of our energy assets in Britain by other countries, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and France through their own state-owned companies.
“The question at the heart of this Bill is a simple one, do we think there should be a British equivalent of state-owned energy generation companies like Orsted, Vattenfall, Statkraft and EDF investing in our infrastructure?
“If it is the right for the Danes, the French, the Norwegian, the Swedes to own British energy assets, it is right for the British people to do as well.”
Ed Miliband added: “It is £8.3 billion investment over the Parliament. It is a significant fund.
“Great British Energy will not become EDF overnight, of course, it won’t. But the point about this government believes in creating a lasting long term legacy for Britain.”
Shadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho has challenged Energy Secretary Ed Miliband’s statements about the Great British Energy Bill.
Ms Coutinho argued that the four-page Bill does not provide specific details on how it plans to meet its promises.
Claire Coutinho said: “He has provided no detail on how this Bill can deliver any of his promises let alone all of them.
“This is a four-page Bill in which the Secretary of State is asking for £8 billion of taxpayers‘ money whilst setting out no investment plan, no figures for the energy that will be produced, no numbers on the energy bill savings, or carbon emission reductions, not even a timeline.”
