Sir Keir Starmer has reinforced his commitment to reducing household energy bills by £300 a year by 2030.
The prime minister told Sky News’s political editor Beth Rigby that the figure is “what we are driving towards” and his plan to build more nuclear reactors will help.
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The pledge, made repeatedly during the general election campaign, has been called into question after the boss of Labour’s GB Energy, Juergen Maier, called the green initiative a “long-term project” and refused to say when household prices would be slashed.
Asked if he stuck by the commitment, Sir Keir said: “Yeah, that is our aim. That’s what we’re driving towards.”
He said the plan would be “pushed forward” by his announcement on Thursday to slash red tape so more nuclear energy projects can be built.
Speaking at the UK National Nuclear Laboratory near Preston, he said this would stop the UK being “exposed to the international market” and give us more control over prices.
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“We said we’d aim for £300, up to £300. That’s what I want to achieve,” the prime minister reiterated.
“I also want stability. I want those bills to be low for a prolonged period of time. I think many businesses, many families have suffered their bills going up and down and we can’t have that volatility anymore,” he added
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The nuclear power announcement forms part of broader plans to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030 – with cheaper bills and better energy security.
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Central to this pledge is the establishment of state-owned energy firm GB Energy, which will be headquartered in the northeast of Scotland and will develop and co-invest in new low-carbon energy.
But earlier this week, the firm’s start-up chairman said it could take 20 years to deliver the promised 1,000 jobs in Aberdeen, while refusing to say when bills could be slashed.
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In his first broadcast interview, Mr Maier told Sky News: “I know that you are asking me for a date as to when I can bring that, but GB Energy has only just been brought into creation and we will bring energy bills down.”
