WELCOME FOR RAPID ACTION ON RENEWABLES & GREEN JOBS

For Immediate Release
Monday, 2 February 2009

SNP DETERMINES MORE ENERGY APPLICATIONS IN LESS THAN HALF THE TIME OF LIB/LAB EXEC

Commenting on the announcement by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth John Swinney today (Monday) of plans to create thousands of green energy jobs by 2020, SNP MSP Rob Gibson – a member of the Scottish Parliament's Transport and Climate Change Committee – hailed the achievement of the SNP Government in determining more energy applications than the previous Labour/LibDem Executive.

Commenting Mr Gibson said:

"With the recent approval for the Siadar marine energy project in the Western Isles - an internationally significant development - Scotland is leading the way in Green energy.

"The SNP government has approved 24 energy developments in the last eighteen months - more than in the whole four years up to May 2007.

"Siadar, the two bio-energy plants under way at Tullis Russell and Diageo in Fife, offshore energy in the Pentland Firth and Scotland's future role in the North Sea Super grid will all create jobs in construction and in operation as well as cutting our reliance on non-renewable energy sources.

"Nuclear energy is contributing an ever decreasing amount to Scotland's energy mix and as an environmental impact assessment of the new generation of nuclear reactors in Finland shows will create seven times as much waste.

"With new developments like Siadar and the £10 million Saltire prize Scotland is at the forefront of new green technology and well on course to meet our clean energy targets and creating a new generation of green energy jobs."

ENDS

NOTES:

1.The SNP Government has approved 24 energy developments since May 2007. In contrast the previous Lab / Lib Dem Executive approved only 18 developments in the four years from 2003-2007.

2. The Siadar marine energy development on the Western Isles will produce 4Mw of green energy

3. Scotland is to play a key role in developing a North Sea grid to tap off shore resources and to support the export of excess renewable energy to Northern Europe.

4. The Scottish Government is expecting to surpass the interim target of 31% of electricity from renewable sources by 2011.

5. The environmental impact assessment of the new generation of nuclear reactors being built in Finland can be read here:

http://www.pressreleasepoint.com/new-nuclear-reactor%E2%80%99s-waste-seven-times-more-hazardous-greenpeace-exposes