The prime minister's cabinet reshuffle, which is being carried today before MPs return to Parliament on Monday (October 6), sees Ed Miliband – previously minister for the cabinet office – promoted to the role of secretary of state for the new energy and climate change portfolio.
This will require Mr Miliband to extend the policy portfolio way beyond the narrow range considered by his predecessors
Philip Wolfe, Renewable Energy Association
And, the changes also involve John Hutton leaving the post of Secretary of State for Business to become Defence Secretary, paving the way for the high profile return of former minister and EU trade commissioner Peter Mandelson to take up the post as the head of BERR.
However, secretary of state for the environment Hilary Benn looks unlikely to leave his position as part of the reshuffle, despite some rumours that he would be on the move from Defra.
As head of the new department, Mr Miliband – who, in his previous role, focussed on the third sector – is expected to have a seat at cabinet meetings, a decision that is thought to reflect the level of importance the Prime Minister is looking to attach to climate change and energy issues.
While the implications of losing their responsibilities in energy and climate change respectively are as yet unclear for BERR and Defra, speculation has already begun about just how it could affect the work being undertaken by the Waste & Resources Action Programme on the carbon impact of recycling.
And, the new department could also have a key role to play in the promotion of waste to energy technologies and, in particular, using Energy-from-Waste for combined heat and power (CHP) and also anaerobic digestion (AD).
The department's creation has been warmly welcomed by the green energy sector, with the director general of the Renewable Energy Association, Philip Wolfe explaining he was “delighted that the Government has acted on our suggestion that energy now needs its own department and cabinet minister.”
He added: “This will require Mr Miliband to extend the policy portfolio way beyond the narrow range considered by his predecessors.”
Fossil fuels
The announcement of the new department was also well-received by the UK's waste management industry. Commenting on today's Cabinet reshuffle, Dirk Hazell, chief executive of the Environmental Services Association, which represents the waste sector, said: “ESA welcomes any restructuring of the Government which better co-ordinates and focuses on cutting fossil fuel emissions.
“Already providing a third of Britain's renewable electricity, we want to be enabled to do much more through the range of sustainable technologies our members offer. We hope the red-amber light now switches to green.”
CBI view
Commenting on the of new department, Dr Neil Bentley, director of dusiness environment at the CBI, said: “Both climate change and energy security are vital national interests that need the Government's fullest attention and urgent action. Combining them may help identify both synergies and trade-offs, but we must avoid either one becoming subordinate to the other. And ultimately, it is sound, timely policy decisions that matter most, not departmental names or structures.”
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