Prime Minister David Cameron has today side-stepped a call to halt government plans to impose deep and rapid cuts to feed-in tariff incentives for solar photovoltaic installations.
Speaking at Prime Minister's Questions, Labour MP for Southampton test Alun Whitehead asked Cameron to intervene in "the appalling chaos" that has been caused by the government's proposals that within six weeks solar incentives will be effectively halved.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) launched the fast-track consultation on Monday, proposing to cut the level of feed-in tariffs for small- and medium-size projects registered after 11 December.
Whitehead warned the cuts would have a "devastating effect" on community schemes in particular. The plans reserve the deepest cuts for aggregated solar schemes, such as social housing or free financing schemes, which could face a further 20 per cent cut to incentives on top of the 50 per cent already planned for small-scale installations.
He asked the prime minister if he stood by his commitment to deliver the "greenest government ever" and if, as a result, he would now order a rethink on the proposed cuts.
In response, Cameron side-stepped the question about feed-in tariffs, instead listing other green initiatives the government is taking, such as investing £3bn in a Green Investment Bank and £1bn in Carbon Capture and Storage technology.
The proposed cuts to feed-in tariffs have sparked intense criticism from green groups and solar firms, many of which have warned the scale and speed of the cuts will result in significant job losses and could kill the fast-expanding industry "stone dead".
The government today mobilised its response to the criticism, with Conservative Cabinet Minister Oliver Letwin telling the House of Commons before PMQs that the controversial changes to the incentives were urgently required.
Responding to concerns from Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh Mike Crockart about the impact of the cuts on local business, Letwin described the previous feed-in tariff rates as "a disgrace" which "cast ill repute" on plans to develop a low-carbon economy by delivering excessive returns of more than 10 per cent to those installing solar panels.
His comments were echoed by Climate Change Minister Greg Barker, who this morning told an audience of local councillors that it was "morally wrong" that the feed-in tariff scheme was offering such large returns when it is funded by a levy on everyone's energy bills.
Barker faced some heckling at the Friends of the Earth conference, with councillors complaining they would be forced to scrap plans to install solar panels on public buildings and social housing, and had been given just six months to modify their plans.
BusinessGreen has learned that a number of councils are considering emulating solar companies by seeking legal action against the government over the pace and scale of the changes to the scheme.
However, the industry faces an uphill battle to secure a more gradual reduction in feed-in tariff incentives, given a number of senior figures within government wanted to see even deeper cuts to incentives.
BusinessGreen has also learned that earlier reports that the government was considering to cut the level of support for all solar installations to just 9p/kWh were accurate, and there have been intense arguments within DECC over the past few weeks over the proposed reforms, with a number of senior officials calling for the lower rate to be imposed.
Barker, who is now facing the brunt of the criticism for the pace and scale of the proposed cuts, is understood to have fought for more modest reductions and is believed to have been instrumental in blocking the proposed 9p/kWh rate.
As a result, the emerging campaign to force the government to reconsider the proposed changes is now expected to target David Cameron and Nick Clegg, with calls for them to intervene and order ministers to rethink their plans.
A group of solar industry campaigners is planning to march on Downing Street on 23 November, urging Cameron to take action. It will host a mass lobby of parliament, accompanied by a protest or stunt, as well as the delivery of a petition to Downing Street demanding more modest cuts to incentives.
They are also expected to point to Cameron and Clegg's previous support for the feed-in tariff schemes and their calls in opposition for the government to make the scheme more ambitious.
Greenpeace this week unearthed a speech by Cameron in 2007 in which he said the incentives were important to the environment and for green economic growth.
"I want Britain to adopt microgeneration," he said. "First you need a system of feed-in tariffs by which people are paid for the energy they produce."
Citing the success of Germany's feed-in tariff, he added: "There is absolutely no reason why this can't be done here. All it needs is the right plans and the right political will to drive it through. Our plans will help create a mass market for microgeneration."
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