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UK needs regional plans made with workers – TUC

A new report: Voice and place: how to plan fair and successful paths to net zero emissions from the TUC sets out the potential for a ‘place-based’ strategy, with direct input from workers, to reach net zero carbon emissions.

The report is based on research in five UK nations and regions that draws on the expertise of local union representatives on the challenges and opportunities in their area.

The results are presented as a series of case studies for Northern England, North West England, the Midlands, Wales, and Yorkshire and Humberside, with recommendations for regional and national policy.

While each case study reveals specific opportunities and challenges, the TUC says that the findings collectively demonstrate the importance of:

  • Placed-based strategy – plans must be tailored for regional industry and geography and different needs and strengths. For example, the North East seaboard is suitable for carbon capture and storage, while the North West has a history of nuclear power and a suitably skilled nuclear workforce.
  • Workers voice – workers had no say in the transition from traditional industry to services in the 1980s, which led to long-term unemployment and poor-quality jobs. That mistake must not be made again and companies should make transition agreements with unions covering job security, re-training and the protection of term and conditions.
  • Regional recovery and transition panels – the UK needs a social partnership approach to reaching net zero and recovering from the pandemic. Regional panels should be established in tandem with a UK national council for recovery and transition.

TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: ‘If workers have a genuine say, plans can be agreed with government and business that provide job security, and protect job quality. That’s going to win community backing too, so progress will be both fairer and faster.’

Meanwhile, around 30,000 new jobs could be created, along with wider economic benefits, if substantial investment in upgrading the energy network is made to enable the transition to electric vehicles across the UK, according to a new study carried out by the University of Strathclyde’s Centre for Energy Policy, supported by SP Energy Networks.

The two organisations examined the wider impacts of the extended and substantial investment in network upgrades required to enable 99% electric vehicle (EV) uptake by 2050 in the UK – concluding that the transition could deliver an additional 30,000 full-time equivalent roles across the UK. The majority of jobs created would be in the network, construction and service sector supply chains. Many would be related to EV manufacturing, from developers of bodywork to delivery drivers for the companies producing EV parts.

News Item details


Journal title: Energy World

Organisation: TUC

Subjects: Policy and Governance, Jobs, Emissions, Net zero

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