Clegg announces £100m for renewables

Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg has announced an additional £100m of funding for small scale renewable energy projects.

The £100m will be added to funds for the creation of the government’s Green Investment Bank, which will support green business including building programmes such as the Green Deal.

Clegg said he wanted to be clear that the government supported the green economy.

“When we say that we want green growth, that is not flimsy, political rhetoric: It is a very real aim, driven by very real economic needs,” he said.

Referring to the recent public disagreement between ministers over the size of subsidies for building wind farms he said: “Yes, there will be internal discussion and debates on the balance and sequencing of different policies – that’s the nature of any government – and energy policies will evolve over time as costs come down.”