David Maddox: Who rules the waves?
It may be a coincidence that Holyrood has at last been given control of the seas around Scotland, but today's fight has been over its waves.
Iain Gray, Labour's leader in Holyrood, put out a press release at 1.06pm telling Alex Salmond that his £10 million Saltire Prize for the first company to successfully harness Scotland's wave power was "not enough." For those who need reminding this is the prize the First minister launched with great fanfare at the National Geographic Society when he was in America for Scotland Week.
Mr Gray - who was so keen to push his message that he had it sent out again at 1.43pm just to make sure journalists hadn't missed it - demanded that the Scottish Government also sets up a £40 million fund for Scotland's wave and power industry as asked for by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IME). Apparently Labour in 2006/07 set up the Wave and Tidal Energy Scheme which gave out grants worth £13.9 million and this was then wound up by the Nationalists when they came to office.
Normally, the SNP respond quickly to such attacks, but their response this time took four hours with the lines accusing Mr Gray of "carping" and "making himself look ridiculous."
SNP MSP Rob Gibson is quoted as saying: "Under the 8 years of a Labour-led Executive - during which Iain Gray was a minister - nothing was done to incentivise Scotland's massive marine renewables potential.
"Labour barely scratched the surface. They were and are split from top to bottom on nuclear, and unable to embrace Scotland's clean, green energy potential."
Surprisingly, he forgot to mention Labour's support for nuclear power, but that will no doubt come up another day.
Iain Gray, Labour's leader in Holyrood, put out a press release at 1.06pm telling Alex Salmond that his £10 million Saltire Prize for the first company to successfully harness Scotland's wave power was "not enough." For those who need reminding this is the prize the First minister launched with great fanfare at the National Geographic Society when he was in America for Scotland Week.
Mr Gray - who was so keen to push his message that he had it sent out again at 1.43pm just to make sure journalists hadn't missed it - demanded that the Scottish Government also sets up a £40 million fund for Scotland's wave and power industry as asked for by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IME). Apparently Labour in 2006/07 set up the Wave and Tidal Energy Scheme which gave out grants worth £13.9 million and this was then wound up by the Nationalists when they came to office.
Normally, the SNP respond quickly to such attacks, but their response this time took four hours with the lines accusing Mr Gray of "carping" and "making himself look ridiculous."
SNP MSP Rob Gibson is quoted as saying: "Under the 8 years of a Labour-led Executive - during which Iain Gray was a minister - nothing was done to incentivise Scotland's massive marine renewables potential.
"Labour barely scratched the surface. They were and are split from top to bottom on nuclear, and unable to embrace Scotland's clean, green energy potential."
Surprisingly, he forgot to mention Labour's support for nuclear power, but that will no doubt come up another day.
Labels: David Maddox, energy, Iain Gray, marine, Saltire Prize
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