UKIP vents wind farm blast

Date published: 25 February 2010

A North West Euro-MP has hit out at wind farms following newly released figures which suggest turbines are inefficienct.

UKIP’s Paul Nuttall said the revelation suggests energy generated by onshore wind farms during the January cold spell averaged only 1 per cent.

He added: “I always knew that blighting the countryside with ugly wind turbines was a waste of money and effort and these figures ably demonstrate that point.

“There are colossal amounts of money being made by those involved in the wind farm industry and they will do all they can to convince people that it is the way forward for our energy needs.

“But I believe it is a con and actually a backward step.”

Lord Hunt, Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change, said during the first two weeks of the year “operationally metered wind” contributed between 0.2 per cent and 2.2 per cent of the total operationally metered generation, averaging around 1 per cent.

Mr Nuttall added: “Lord Hunt went on to say that only half the onshore wind farms and none of the offshore wind farms are operationally monitored so in fact the figures could actually be lower.

“We all know winters have been getting colder in this country and clearly wind farms are not the answer.

“These figures show that wind power is at its most unreliable when the need for power is at its peak. When the wind does not blow on cold, still days, the turbine blades do not turn.

“There needs to be an urgent rethink on meeting our energy needs. I will continue to oppose planning applications for wind farms, both onshore and off shore.”