08 October 2009 - The Green Party Leader and MEP for Kent and the South East today welcomed the decision by energy giant E.On to suspend its plans to build a new coal fired power station at Kingsnorth.

Caroline Lucas MEP, who joined protesters at Climate Camp 2008 at Kingsnorth in her Kent constituency to rally against the Government’s continued commitment to unsustainable fossil fuels, said:

“The decision to suspend plans to build the first coal fired power station in Britain for 30 years at Kingsnorth represents a real triumph for everyone who has fought so hard to oppose this dangerous facility. This is a victory for those who have taken to the streets in the fight against climate change.

“Kingsnorth has been nothing short of a PR disaster for the UK Government – and for E.ON, which has tried in vain, via an expensive marketing campaign, to convince the world that it is genuinely committed to a cleaner, more sustainable future.

"A new coal facility at Kingsnorth would emit millions tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere each year – and potentially keep doing so for 50 years. So-called ‘clean coal’, or carbon capture and storage (CCS) does not even exist yet – and it may well not be possible to fully capture and store emissions for decades to come."

She concluded: “In the meantime, the Government should be providing long term investment guarantees and incentives in order to initiate a renewable energy and energy efficiency revolution, complete with a new green-collar workforce.”

ENDS