Action on energy costs is my overriding aim, says Fahnbulleh

Miatta Fahnbulleh, the energy secretary, told BBC Panorama that affordability is her "overriding objective" and that cutting bills is key to maintaining public support for climate action. She said Labour's push for greener electricity is "one of our routes to delivering affordability" and that homegrown renewables and nuclear would drive bills down in the long term. The interview aired on Monday night after being recorded the previous week.

The timing matters because ministers are weighing how to respond to a predicted surge in energy prices in January, which the BBC said would mark the biggest rise in bills for four years. UK households already pay one of the highest electricity rates in Europe, with bills pushed up by subsidies and by high gas prices driven by international conflicts.

Fahnbulleh conceded that the push to cut carbon emissions is "under pressure" amid discontent over rising prices. She said people want to blame net zero, though she does not believe that is the case. She stressed that reducing carbon emissions "absolutely is a priority," pointing to this summer's droughts as evidence of the need to tackle global warming. However, she called Labour's target for 95% of electricity generated in Britain to come from clean power sources by 2030 a "stretch."

The political context includes Reform UK's rise in opinion polls and the Conservatives under Kemi Badenoch disowning their previous ambition of reaching net zero by 2050. Both opposition parties have targeted public subsidy schemes for renewable electricity generation, arguing they drive up consumer costs.

Building reported that last week's Budget did not kill the net zero agenda but rewrote its rules, with affordability, grid value and national security now the criteria that matter. The legal target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 remains. Defence is the big winner in public spending, and parts of the energy transition are helping to pay for it. The chancellor's letter to the National Wealth Fund said the government will only support new generation schemes where they directly lower bills, benefit the system, and can be accommodated by the grid.

Building also reported a £1bn cut to Warm Homes grants, with grant funding for hydrogen falling by £500m and carbon capture by £200m. The government approved drilling at the Jackdaw gas field ahead of the Budget, while a decision on production at the Rosebank oil field off Shetland has yet to be taken. On Monday, it was reported that the government is considering weakening the electric vehicle mandate requiring manufacturers to phase out petrol and diesel cars by 2035, ahead of ministers heading to Turkey for COP31.