Britain14 August, 20262 min read
Michael Shanks Calls John Swinney Irresponsible for Urging Andy Burnham to Reconsider Ming Yang Wind Turbine Plan
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Swinney's request to Burnham to reconsider Ming Yang wind turbine factory plan deemed irresponsible. Michael Shanks described the call as surprising.
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Ming Yang dispute
Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney was branded “irresponsible” by UK energy security minister Michael Shanks after Swinney asked Prime Minister Andy Burnham to reconsider a block on a proposed Ming Yang wind turbine factory at Ardersier, near Inverness. Shanks described Swinney’s call as “surprising,” saying he had personally arranged for Swinney to have a “security briefing at the highest level” on the issue.
“Energy security minister Michael Shanks described the call from John Swinney as ‘surprising’.”
The AOL.co.uk report says the development could create up to 1,500 jobs in the area and that the UK Government previously blocked the plan, prompting Swinney to accuse it of “an anti-Scottish move” over national security concerns. Swinney also said the UK Government was “welcoming Chinese investment into Hinkley power station south of the border,” and he argued: “If that’s not an anti-Scottish move by a Labour Government, I don’t know what is.”
BBQ ban and alerts
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the government is considering a ban on disposable barbecues amid increased wildfire risk driven by this summer’s droughts, telling reporters that people should not be using them “at this moment in time.” Burnham chaired an emergency Cobra meeting on the government’s response to record temperatures, with nearly three-quarters of England and all of Wales officially declared in drought and a Met Office amber extreme heat warning for Thursday.
The BBC reported that disposable barbecues have now been temporarily banned from sale over fears they pose a “significant risk to the public,” and that the government said they have been the cause of “a number of serious wildfires across the country over the summer months”. The BBC also said the public were urged not to light open fires and to dispose of cigarettes carefully, while a No 10 spokesperson said firefighters, farmers and NHS staff were facing challenges connected to the weather.
Military help and numbers
As the wildfire response escalated, the BBC said 200 personnel were deployed to help emergency teams tackling wildfires around the country, with Gurkha logistics teams equipped with water tankers and military engineers assisting fire services in South Wales. The BBC reported that a total of 1,017 wildfires have been recorded in England and Wales this year, and that an emergency alert was sent to mobile phones warning of a “very high risk of wildfires nationally” across England and Wales.
“200 personnel have now been deployed to help emergency teams tackling wildfires around the country.”
In parallel, the GOV.UK update said an Emergency Alert would be sent on a rolling basis from approximately 19:00 and would warn people not to light anything that could spark a fire, including barbecues, campfires, and fireworks. GOV.UK also said the package included military assistance in South Wales where around 100 personnel have been immediately deployed, and that a further 100 members of the Armed Forces would deploy that evening.