DOZENS of workers from Cheshire’s solar companies gathered in protest this week to demand Chester MP Stephen Mosley’s support in protecting the solar industry.
More than 50 employees from companies in and around Chester united outside Mr Mosley’s Nicholas Street offices to urge him to do more to protect their jobs in light of proposed government cuts to the industry which will result in cancelled orders and job losses throughout the UK.
The renewable industry employs about 39,000 workers in the UK, which includes an estimated 3,000 solar panel installers and associated workers employed in the Chester area.
In order to meet their carbon reduction targets, the government initially encouraged use of solar panels by paying a feed-in tariff for the energy they generated.
Now they want to reduce the tariff by more than half, and have given workers in the solar panel industry just six weeks notice of the change in strategy.
Claire Davis, director of The Green Electrician, a solar provider based in Nantwich, said the change in policy was ‘a real setback’ for the North West economy.
“We are protesting outside Stephen Mosley’s offices because we want a clear strategy and a workable future for solar power manufacturers, installers and our customers,” she said. “The Government said it was serious about building a viable solar industry and we have done just that by generating local jobs and revenue at a time when much of the economy is struggling.
“This change in policy undermines the industry,” she added.
Last week, hundreds of solar supporters joined Claire and other staff from The Green Electrician in protest to lobby the support of Crewe and Nantwich MP Edward Timpson in Westminster.
