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By stewartb
From the Aberdeen-based Energy Voice news website (September 18): ‘‘Shameful’: GB Energy to allocate 6% of £30m community fund to Scotland’.
‘The announcement that as little as 6% of GB Energy’s recently revealed £30 million community energy scheme (sic) has been branded “shameful” by one Aberdeen MSP.
‘Under-secretary of state in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Martin McCluskey, revealed that only £1.8m from the new initiative would be allocated north of the border. ‘
To this, Donside MSP Jackie Dunbar (SNP) said: “Scotland is home to 30% of UK renewables generation and 82% of UK oil and gas production, yet we given just 6% of GB Energy cash – the Labour Party is ruining our premier energy industry while dishing out pocket change to energy-rich Scotland. (my emphasis)
“Shameful token gestures won’t cut it when people in energy-rich Scotland are seeing their bills rise £1000 higher than the Labour Party promised while our energy jobs are being lost at an industrial scale.”
In the same article, on GB Energy we also learn this: ‘As of May, it was understood that around 124 people were employed by the firm. Since then, GB Energy has been on a recruitment drive as it launched its search for senior positions such as chief financial officer. At the time of writing, GB Energy is recruiting for seven positions, all of which are set to be based in either Aberdeen or Edinburgh.’
Impressive employment creation? Aye right!
And what has the Unionist press been saying about GB Energy’s job creation track record in Scotland so far? From the Scottish Daily Express on August 20: ‘GB Energy row as a third of workforce refuse to relocate to Scotland amid SNP high taxes – The Scottish Tories slated the failed promises of the UK Labour Government when it comes to GB Energy as it has brought very little jobs to Aberdeen.’ (I think the Express – or the Tories – meant to say ‘few’ not ‘little’ jobs!)
The Express reports: ‘A huge row has broken out after it was revealed that more than a third of workers employed by Labour’s flagship GB Energy company have refused to relocate to Scotland. The organisation is headquartered in Aberdeen but even the outgoing chairman Jürgen Maier is not based there full time.’
And: ‘.. the number of employees is down massively on the promised “1,000 or more jobs” when the publicly-owned energy company was initially announced, with only 132 workers registered, two years after the General Election.’
On the jobs creation promise: ‘But this has never materialised, with GB Energy employing only 53 permanent workers, 31 short-term staff and a further 48 on secondment. According to the Times, of the 132 employees in total, 46 – a little more than a third of the head count – live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland rather than Scotland.’
Who’s going to relocate on a short-term contract or a secondment? The tax ‘dig’ in the Express’ headline is a distraction: the key point is that GB Energy is not living up to Labour’s election promises to Scottish voters. Anyone surprised?
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