Osborne: Now Businesses Say You're Wrong

Really, George?

The UK Chancellor, George Osborne, is all for a second dash-for-gas as the solution to Britain's energy gap. This, despite the fact that it would result in us missing our legal commitments on carbon emission cuts of 80% by 2050.

Environmentalists don't like what he's saying, nor do the government's own parliamentary Energy and Climate Change Committee, and now 50 businesses and organisations have just written to him saying the same.

Those businesses include Alliance Boots, Asda, Aviva, British American Tobacco, EDF, Microsoft, Marks & Spencer, PepsiCo, Philips, Sky and the Co-operative.

Their message is basically this: Set an emissions target for 2030 to show your government's commitment and give investors the long-term confidence to transform the electricity market and boost the economy.

At the moment, the government is giving the opposite impression with recent statements about going all-out for new gas-fueled power stations. This would undermine renewable and nuclear energy investment and cripple one of the few areas of growth in our economy: Green businesses (who provided a third of UK growth in 2011/2012).

Even the CBI estimate that the current policies (or lack of them) could lose the UK £400m in exports in 2014/2015 alone.

Come on Osborne, wake up! You want to revive the economy, and green business could lead the way. Why don't you get it?

More background here.