As part of his sustained campaign opposing local pylon plans and wider energy infrastructure developments, James Wild MP has once again challenged the Energy Minister in Parliament over the government’s failure to understand local opposition to National Grid’s proposed 90-mile pylon route from Grimsby to Walpole.
Speaking in the House of Commons, James highlighted the major detrimental impact the proposals would have on rural areas due to the scale of the infrastructure, the loss of high-quality farmland, and the proximity to homes across North West Norfolk.
The plans would see 50-metre-high pylons every 300 metres stretching from Grimsby to a new substation at Walpole, alongside large converter stations and additional infrastructure that James has consistently argued are out of scale for the area.
James pressed Energy Minister Michael Shanks MP to work with National Grid to properly consider alternative options such as undergrounding or offshore routes, which James has previously raised, and to ensure that if the proposals do go ahead, affected communities are fairly compensated for the disruption and loss of amenity.
Speaking in the House of Commons, James Wild MP said:
“Proposals for 90 miles of pylons from Grimsby to Walpole in my constituency would have a major detrimental impact on rural areas due to the scale of the infrastructure, the loss of high-quality farmland and the proximity of the infrastructure to homes.Does the Minister understand - I do not think he does - why local people say no to pylons? Will he get National Grid to look properly at undergrounding or offshoring, to reduce the impact on these communities and ensure that if the proposals do go ahead, communities are properly compensated?”
In response, Energy Minister, Michael Shanks MP, said:
“I could not have organised that better if I had tried: immediately after I said, “If you are against grid infrastructure, you are against economic growth”, up pops the hon. Gentleman to make exactly that point. His party is against building the future of this country, and we are not going to follow that path at all. Decades of under-investment have led to the issues we face today. They hold back economic growth across the country.“This infrastructure has to be built somewhere.
“We are determined that communities benefit from that by introducing what the previous Government failed to do: community benefits for the communities who are hosting the infrastructure.”
Speaking after the exchange, James said:
“It seems the Minister either refuses - or is unable - to grasp why local communities are saying no to pylons. His response that the pylons “must go somewhere” is tone deaf and entirely dismisses the strength of local opposition and shows no regard for the serious concerns of communities.”
James has been campaigning against the current proposals for pylons raising the issue in Parliament, co-signing letters to the National Energy System Operator and ministers, attending National Grid’s public consultations, and calling for greater transparency and collaboration with local communities.
ENDS
