Labour’s flagship GB Energy will be based in one of Scotland’s three largest cities. During the general election campaign, Labour promised the new publicly-owned energy company would be based somewhere in Scotland - but no further details of where have been given yet. Advertisement Advertisement Sign up to our Politics newsletter Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more.
However, it is now understood Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has narrowed it down to three options - Glasgow, Edinburgh or Aberdeen. It means other areas which had been touted - such as Grangemouth, Greenock and Fife - will not be getting the GB Energy headquarters. On Thursday Energy Minister and Scottish Labour MP Michael Shanks officially introduced the GB Energy Bill in the House of Commons.
The new UK government also introduced a second Bill to give the Crown Estate borrowing powers to invest in wind farms. The Crown Estate owns large swathes of the sea bed around Britain. Mr Miliband said GB Energy would start making a profit within five years, and Sir Keir Starmer suggests it will bring down household energy bills by £300 a year.
So when it comes to making a decision on which city to choose, what are the pros and cons? Aberdeen Pros - Aberdeen has long been one of the favourites for the base, as it is the oil and gas capital of Europe. It will potentially suffer the most if there is not a just transition - thousands of highly-skilled workers could be looking for a new job in renewables in the coming years. Being chosen could also help boost support for Labour in the area.
In recent years, the party has struggled to compete against the SNP and the Conservatives in the north-east. Cons - It has been suggested the main role of the GB Energy headquarters will be to recruit financiers with experience of doing big deals and project management. There is a smaller pool of financial experience to pick from in the north-east compared to those with the technical skills of producing energy.
Advertisement Advertisement Edinburgh Pros - Most of Scotland’s financial institutions are based in the capital , meaning GB Energy would have the pick of senior executives with strong financial experience behind them. Given the company is going to be dealing with financial deals, it would be good to have a large talent pool to recruit from. Cons - While the city is known for its large financial base, Edinburgh is not as well known for its energy sector, so there may be an expertise gap there.
Labour could also open itself up to criticisms of Central Nelt bias by snubbing the north-east in favour of the capital. Glasgow Pros - A number of energy companies are already based in the city, such as ScottishPower. There are also a number of renewable projects in the area which Labour politicians have frequently visited, such as Whitelee Windfarm.
So there is plenty of experience amongst workers in the city when it comes to energy and renewables. It is also an area of high Labour support - the party won all the Glasgow seats in the general election. Cons - In a similar vein to picking Edinburgh, Labour could open itself up to criticisms of Central Belt bias by choosing Glasgow.
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