Onward Bulletin 21/09/2021
The latest research, events and news straight to your inbox every Tuesday.
Hello and welcome to Onward’s weekly summary of research, events and opinion. We hope you enjoy it. If you do, tell your friends or donate to support our work.
Onward Activity
With two weeks until Conservative Party Conference gets underway, we are delighted to share our programme of events, with even more to follow. To register for all our events, click here.
We are delighted that a number of Onward’s network have been promoted to senior positions within Government, including:
Neil O’Brien MP, Onward co-founder, has been appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. He will be joining Kemi Badenoch MP, another former member of Onward’s Advisory Board, who has been appointed Minister for Levelling Up at the Department Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Will Tanner was quoted commenting on the potential of the new department in the BBC.
Gillian Keegan MP has also joined the Department of Health and Social Care as Minister of State for Care.
Rachel Maclean MP has moved to the Home Office as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Safeguarding and Afghan Resettlement.
Chris Philip has been appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.
In the news
Last week’s event with the Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng MP was referenced by the Times, discussing the need for Government intervention to protect the environment. You can watch the full event here.
Onward’s recent report Turnaround was covered by Polly Toynbee in the Guardian, championing and giving insight into the New Deal for Communities.
Will Tanner wrote in Times’ Red Box last week on the need for an updated approach to local government funding, called for in Onward’s latest report Fair Funding.
Onward’s polling on attitudes to a second Scottish independence referendum was referenced in the Express. Will Tanner was also quoted, highlighting the preference for fiscal responsibility over separatist rhetoric. Read the key findings here.
The Rural Services Network quoted Onward Director Will Tanner’s interview with Newsnight and discussed Onward’s research Turnaround and Workington Man, referencing the non-metropolitan dimension of the levelling up-agenda.
Onward’s report Age of Alienation was cited by William Hague in his piece for the Times, championing the emergence of volunteering groups in the UK and potential of these groups going forward.
Come join the Onward team: We are looking for a brilliant candidate to lead our Getting to Zero programme. To find out more please click here or get in touch if you are interested.
On Monday, gas prices soared by a further 16 percent, reaching 188.10p per therm. Prices have surged in the past year as the world emerges from the pandemic, and now trade at around four times the average over the past decade. A number of factors have driven this escalation.
Firstly, demand is up as reserves are lower than usual across Europe following last year’s cold winter.
Secondly, British gas production in the North Sea fell due to disruption caused by the pandemic, and is yet to return to previous levels.
Thirdly, the price of carbon allowances traded under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme has more than doubled in the past year to a new all-time-high last month, partly driven by anticipation of reduced gas supply resulting in increased use of coal this winter.
Fourthly, lower-than-average wind speeds across Europe in recent months have temporarily increased the reliance on fossil fuels for power generation.
Finally, Russian gas supply to Europe has been restricted by state-owned Gazprom, leaving European countries racing to fill their reserves before the winter closes in. By capping gas supply to Europe, the Kremlin hopes to push through the opening of the new Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
Instead of pointing to Putin’s geopolitical maneuvering, climate sceptics are attempting to capitalise on the crisis by arguing that the drop in wind speeds is the primary driver of the surge in gas prices. This is a poor conclusion to draw.
It is true that average wind speeds have dropped. Orsted reported that they were down around 0.8m/s in the second quarter of 2021. However, this only equates to a fall in energy production of roughly a quarter. Wind, while accounting for an ever-growing share of Europe’s energy mix, still only met 16.4% of demand across the EU and the UK in 2020.
A temporary fall in wind speeds is therefore simply not enough to drive up gas prices in the manner that they have risen, especially at the time of year in which energy usage is lowest. It is crucial we remain wary of those who seek to weaponise the surge in energy prices to promote the narrative that renewables are poor alternatives to fossil fuels due to their volatility. The crisis simply proves the opposite.
There are challenges in transitioning to an entirely renewables-based grid. But that should not be a deterrent from pursuing a net zero goal. Instead, it should be a further invitation for the Government to pursue innovation policies which will propel the development of new technologies for energy storage and grid flexibility to overcome these barriers, while capitalising on the jobs benefits that green electricity brings.
The lesson that we should learn from this crisis is that continued decarbonisation towards net zero is the right path to remain on. Transitioning away from a fossil fuel economy will reduce our reliance on foreign powers to meet our energy needs and minimize our susceptibility to their manipulation of gas and oil prices.
In times of crisis such as this, it is crucial to look past the hysteria and remember that net zero is the solution to energy security risk, and not the problem.
Policy bites
The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government has been renamed the Department for Levelling Up, Communities and Local Government, signalling this Government’s commitment to level up the UK. Link.
The UK, US and Australia launched a new security partnership, to protect interests in the Indo-Pacific. Link.
In with the old: The Government has announced a review for reintroducing imperial measurement for marketing and sales following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. Link
Quick links
The speed can change but momentum must not stop: Former Minister for Schools Nick Gibb MP on what he has learnt from 15 years of education reform from the front benches, and what he hopes for his successors. Link
A look at the generation gap: New survey data looks at the intergenerational attitudes to some of the defining questions of our times. Link
Giving a helping hand: William Hague discusses the latent potential for volunteering in the UK and the important role it will play in the levelling up agenda. Link
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