Miliband to strip councils of powers to block 800ft wind turbines

16 comments

1. ***The Telegraph reports:***

   [Ed Miliband](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/04/02/miliband-urged-make-gas-boilers-expensive-boost-heat-pumps/) has stripped local councils of their power to block [giant onshore windfarm developments](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/11/14/scout-moor-britain-biggest-wind-farm-labour-net-zero/) by declaring them all to be nationally significant infrastructure projects – where he gets the ultimate sign-off.

   It opens the way for a raft of new windfarms with turbines predicted to exceed 800ft in height – a size so far only deployed offshore.

   Under the new rules, approved by the House of Commons, any application to build a windfarm exceeding 100 megawatts output will bypass local councils and go straight to the Planning Inspectorate – with Mr Miliband having final approval.

   It follows Mr Miliband’s decision last year to lift the previous government’s effective ban on onshore wind farms in England, effectively opening up most of the country to wind farm developments.

   A Commons vote this week saw Labour MPs back Mr Miliband’s plan despite criticisms from other parties about his “power grab” and the loss of local democracy.

   Junior energy minister Michael Shanks justified the move, saying: “We need to build nationally important infrastructure and that does mean much more wind in England to match the significant amount of onshore wind that’s been built in Scotland over the past few years.”

   Following Mr Miliband’s lifting of the ban on onshore wind, hundreds of projects are in planning with many developers expected to seek permission for the largest possible machines. Scotland and Wales have already seen applications for turbines 800ft to 900ft tall.

   **Read more:** [**https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/04/04/miliband-strip-councils-powers-block-800ft-wind-turbines/**](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/04/04/miliband-strip-councils-powers-block-800ft-wind-turbines/)

2. Good 👍

3. We need energy independence as soon as possible. This is just another step towards it.

4. Good news. Remember it was only a couple of years ago we were getting warnings of energy blackouts during winter.

   With an ever growing population and also the gradual move to electric vehicles it’s clear we’re going to need a lot more electricity.

5. dangerous but I can’t exactly blame the action.

6. Important to note, this was posted by u/TheTelegraph.

   So I’d just like to say, fuck The Telegraph.

   This is a good thing. Let’s continue investing in renewable energy.

   And r/uknews mods should ban newspapers from posting.

7. A few years ago, a local village to me complained about the planned building of wind turbines in a field, asking the council to put a stop to them. They complained the turbines would ruin the view from the village. The view so good it needed to be protected? It was of a grey concrete power station. The field they wanted to build them in was between the village and a coal power station.

   In the end the turbines didn’t go ahead, as it was determined they were too close to an airfield, but still, I’ve always found the village’s official complaint ridiculous.

8. I mean, this is all well and good. But hasn’t anyone thought of Mrs Miggins. She had her eyeline temporarily disturbed while driving through the countryside by one of these things one time. Therefore they should be banned everywhere for all time.

9. Good now we should be training some of the 500k neets to work on these windfarms.

10. Expensive wind turbines made in China by slave labour, well done Milliband and thanks for giving us the worlds highest electricity bills.

11. Good

12. Nooooooo mine was 799ft

13. Good.

14. They are not the answer total waste of energy and material building and replacing them…

15. Good news

16. The chaotic energy of Milliband is being unleashed, and it’s so good to see

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