We never doubted the proposals in the government’s energy review would generate protest. But that’s not because we are seeking conflict. We believe the energy review’s proposals are balanced, clearly thought-out and, most importantly, seriously address the challenges of climate-change and energy security  – two of the most important challenges the country faces.
Controversy is inevitable because we know that many people have strong, often principled, views on issues like nuclear power. And long-term decisions to secure our country’s energy security are always hard and invariably controversial, even if some of our political opponents may later quietly admit their criticism was wrong.

There is no doubt tough decisions are needed. The UK is entering a new era for energy supplies. For years, we have been self-sufficient in gas and oil, thanks to North Sea oil production. There are still many years of production there but, in future, we will increasingly depend on imports to meet demand. That is why it is so important to look for ways to cut demand for energy. Our aim must be to grow our economy whilst cutting waste and using every unit of energy as efficiently as possible.

On energy security, we are moving rapidly from being almost self-sufficient in oil and gas to having to import 90 per cent from countries often in unstable areas of the world. Over the same time frame, older domestic coal and nuclear power plants that now produce something like 30 per cent of our energy will become obsolete.

Without action, we face a disastrous energy shortfall. But we also need to worry about our sources and use of energy, which remain major contributors to global carbon emissions. Without concerted domestic and international action, damaging, perhaps devastating, irreversible climate-change seems inevitable.

These are the two challenges that the energy review addresses directly. The good news is that the solutions to both are the same – a mixture of measures to harness technology so we use energy more efficiently and generate more of it domestically and sustainably.

We can’t achieve these goals, which are vital for our prosperity, way of life and the health of our planet, by going down one route to the exclusion of others – via the nuclear route, nor, in the medium term at least, through an expansion of renewable power, local generation or energy-efficiency. We need to ensure an energy mix, and so they must all be part of the answer.

That’s exactly what our proposals are designed to achieve. We set out how we intend to ensure 20 per cent of our electricity will come from renewable sources – wind, solar, wave and emerging technologies – by 2020, and extend the transport bio-fuel target to 10 per cent by 2015. Hitting the transport target alone is the equivalent of taking a million cars off the road.
We detail a major drive on energy-efficiency to cut energy use, and phase out wasteful products like inefficient fridges and light bulbs. We all have a part to play, whether government, energy-producers, business or individuals. Replacing three light bulbs in every home with energy-efficient ones would save enough electricity to power the nation’s streetlights as well as cutting family bills.

The package shows, too, how we will encourage local energy production and micro-generation by making it easier, for example, to fit solar panels and wind turbines to homes. Improving the planning procedures overall is an essential part of our proposals. The potential is such that, by 2050, the household sector could be producing more energy than it needs, and we’ll ensure electricity companies buy the excess.

But important as all this is, it will not be enough for the foreseeable future. We need as a country to be ready to invest in new nuclear plants to replace those coming to an end of their lives. Nuclear power supplies nearly 20 per cent of electricity now. Without replacing these plants, it will fall by 2020 to seven per cent. Renewable energy simply can’t make up the gap in time. The result would be a country more dependent on imported gas, with carbon emissions increasing, not falling.

Overall our proposals will reduce carbon emissions by up to 25 million tonnes or the equivalent of 17 million homes, putting us on track for a 60 per cent reduction by 2050. So it is a balanced package, which promotes and encourages an ever-bigger role for renewable and locally produced energy. It ensures a guaranteed and diverse mix of energy at the same time as taking serious steps to tackle climate change.

There is nothing serious, however, about our political opponents. The Conservatives are taking their now familiar policy position – both in favour and opposed – for example, to nuclear power. The Liberal Democrats, as ever, hope our energy challenges can be met without taking any tough decisions at all. Governments, however, don’t have that luxury. And neither does this country.