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  "path": "/politics/ed-miliband-labours-net-zero-electricity-bills",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-04T07:05:14.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "UK workers hit by Rachel Reeves's £210bn tax grab as millions pushed into higher rates",
    "Britain will have to pay £1bn for closer ties with EU as Brussels tells Keir Starmer to pay up",
    "Welfare pays more than work for 600,000 households in Britain as critics slam £155bn benefits budget",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nEd Miliband has been accused of \"covering up\" evidence Labour’s Net Zero plans will increase household electricity bills for British households.\n\nThe Conservative Party accused the Energy Secretary of burying documents which reveal his decision to scrap significant market reforms in order to aid his controversial green policy.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nA proposal for regional electricity pricing last year was abandoned as wind farm developers claimed it would derail Labour’s clean power 2030 target and affect investment.\n\nMr Miliband vowed a “full cost-benefit analysis\" would be published at the end of 2025.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nHowever, the report has not yet been published.\n\nThe Energy Secretary has also blocked the release of an official impact assessment of the policy, leading critics to slam the handling of the data.\n\nThe unreleased document was never finished, and it would cause \"confusion and misunderstanding\" if released now, the publication has revealed.\n\nThe Department for Energy Security and Net Zero adds that \"work on the modelling and analysis is still ongoing\" despite Mr Miliband vowing its release nearly six months ago.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nReleasing the confidential document might \"disrupt both energy and financial markets\", Labour argue, potentially affecting domestic bills, though it offered no supporting evidence for this claim.\n\nSam Richards, of the think tank Britain Remade, described Mr Miliband as reckless and urged him to \"come clean\" on the decision not to move the pricing model.\n\nHe added: \"Hiding behind process to stop the release of the impact assessment, after announcing the policy, makes no sense, unless, as suspected, it shows that decisions taken by the energy secretary will in fact raise bills.\"\n\nShadow Energy Secretary Claire Coutinho told The Telegraph: \"Zonal pricing reduces wind developer profits, but it also cuts the cost of building the grid, which is already almost a third of electricity bills.\"\n\n### LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:\n\n\n\n\n  * UK workers hit by Rachel Reeves's £210bn tax grab as millions pushed into higher rates\n  * Britain will have to pay £1bn for closer ties with EU as Brussels tells Keir Starmer to pay up\n  * Welfare pays more than work for 600,000 households in Britain as critics slam £155bn benefits budget\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nShe added: “Of course, once again Ed Miliband is siding with wind developers over consumers, and now he’s trying to cover up just how much it’s going to cost you.\"\n\nEmma Floyd, the department’s director for clean energy investment, said: \"We accept that public interest heavily favours disclosure. However, we have to take into consideration the types of factors outlined above.\"\n\nThe proposed zonal pricing system would have divided Britain's electricity market into regional areas, each establishing prices based on local supply and demand conditions.\n\nProminent backers included the National Energy System Operator, Octopus Energy and Ovo Energy, who argued the reform would reduce bills by cutting system costs, particularly the substantial payments made to wind farms for switching off when grid congestion prevents their power from being used.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nResearch conducted by FTI Consulting for Octopus estimated annual savings of more than £3.7billion.\n\nHowever, major wind farm operators such as SSE, Scottish Power and RWE resisted the changes, warning of a \"postcode lottery\" that would paralyse investment.\n\nCivil servants advising Mr Miliband reportedly supported the reform and recommended approval, yet the Energy Secretary announced in July he was scrapping it \"to give certainty to investors\".\n\nUnder the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero plans, offshore wind capacity is set to triple by 2030.\n\nA DESNZ spokesman said: \"Transitioning to zonal pricing would have created at least seven years of uncertainty, putting a risk premium on new investment that could have caused bills to rise in the short term.\"\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n**\n**\n\n**\n**\n\n**Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**",
  "title": "Ed Miliband accused of 'covering up' evidence Labour’s Net Zero plans will increase electricity bills"
}