New government department for climate change

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has created a new government department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC).

The department was created during the cabinet’s latest reshuffle, with Ed Milliband - formerly minister for the cabinet office and brother of Foreign Secretary David Milliband - promoted to lead the department.

Combining energy and climate change into a single department demonstrates Brown’s determination to win over the environmental vote for Labour, and to put Britain at the forefront of the battle against climate change.

The new department may help to counter the anger of environmentalists upset at the comments of John Hutton, former Secretary of State for business, which up until now held the energy portfolio.

At the Labour Party Conference last month, Hutton said that Britain must embrace nuclear and coal power to ensure its future energy security.

Both the energy industry and environmentalists have welcomed the new department as a positive change.

Dr Neil Bentley, director of business environment at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), said that both climate change and energy security are vital national interests.

He added that the new department must carefully balance the tension between combating climate change and ensuring energy security without giving priority to one cause or the other.

Environmental groups have been more cautious in their welcome, although they recognise that the new department is an important step in moving climate change towards the centre of the government’s agenda.

In the past, environmentalists have accused the government of saying the right things on climate change, but not backing up their words with effective action.

Ed Milliband said he is looking forward to the responsibility of taking charge at the new department.

He added that his job is to make sure that the government’s climate change policies are sustainable and offer a fair deal to ‘ordinary families’ struggling to meet their energy bills.