'I'm all for green energy', says Reform mayor

Hull and East Yorkshire mayor Luke Campbell said he is "all for creating jobs in any sector"

The mayor of Hull and East Yorkshire has said he is "all for" cleaner air and green energy.

At a Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority (HEYCA) meeting, councillors questioned Luke Campbell's stance on renewable energy.

Reform UK has pledged to scrap the UK's net-zero target and introduce taxes on the renewables sector.

But former Olympic boxer Campbell said at the meeting he is "all for creating jobs in any sector" and added: "Who doesn't like cleaner air and green energy?"

Campbell has openly supported parts of the region's renewables sector by visiting and offering support to Vivergo Fuels, the bioethanol plant that was shut down.

He also said he was "delighted" after HEYCA secured £700k from the government's mayoral renewables fund to cut energy costs in Hull and East Yorkshire over the next 25 years through solar panel projects.

But Campbell later warned renewable energy firms to act "at your own risk" in response to Boston and Skegness MP Richard Tice's letter stating a Reform UK-led government would "reassess all net zero-related commitments".

'Stand for the people'

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, at the HEYCA meeting, Labour councillor Shane McMurray asked Campbell: "Is there anything you can say now to give reassurance to people who work at Siemens, who want to get a career in wind farms and jobs like that?"

Campbell replied: "The mayor of Hull and East Yorkshire should stand for the people, it was the people that elected Luke Campbell into place so I'll stand up and represent them the best I can.

"If that's creating jobs in any sector I'm all for it. Who doesn't like cleaner air and green energy? I do and I'm all for that."

McMurray said the mayor's response "will give a lot of reassurance to a lot of workers and a lot of people who want to work in the industry in this region".

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