Ed Miliband insists he DIDN'T consider quitting over Labour's green U-turn after Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves junk £28bn spending plans to plunge party into chaos

Ed Miliband tonight insisted he didn’t consider quitting over Labour’s green U-turn after the party junked its £28billion a year spending plans.

The shadow climate secretary was thought to be on resignation watch as Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves scrapped the pledge.

Mr Miliband, a former Labour leader himself, was said to have argued strongly for sticking with the £28billion figure and was seen as a key supporter of the policy.

But he rowed in behind Sir Keir and Ms Reeves this evening and claimed Britain could still ‘move the dial on climate’ under Labour’s now watered-down proposals.

Mr Miliband’s show of unity eases some pressure on Sir Keir following his humiliating reverse on his flagship investment plans.

The U-turn has, however, still caused deep divisions elsewhere in Labour with trade unions, environmental groups and backbenchers all criticising the decision.

Ed Miliband insisted he didn’t consider quitting over Labour ‘s green U-turn after the party junked its £28billion a year spending plans

The shadow climate secretary was thought to be on resignation watch as Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves scrapped the pledge

Asked whether he thought about quitting over the issue, Mr Miliband told Channel 4 News tonight: ‘Absolutely not.

‘Because the test I apply is are we going to go into the next election, if we’re the next government, am I going to be able to be the energy secretary who can genuinely say Britain is leading the world?

‘Britain is going to move the dial on climate and that is the test. That’s why I’m in frontline politics because I care so much about this cause and my test of what we’ve come up with is – does meet the criteria I have? And absolutely it does.’

Mr Miliband argued Labour still has a ‘massive agenda to invest in the future of the country’ and that he has a ‘responsibility’ to ‘make a difference’ should he become energy secretary.

‘The only thing I can do, the only right thing to do, is to fight for the maximum possible ambition,’ he added.

‘And to make sure that in government we can make a difference. I’m confident we can.’

Labour announced yesterday the £28billion a year figure would be drastically scaled back to £23.7billion over the course of the next parliament if it wins the next election.

Mr Miliband conceded that ‘it will take us longer to achieve what we wanted to achieve’ but said the public care about the ‘good jobs’ that green investment offers.

‘We’re going to invest in the green economy and we’re going to do so in a way that is fiscally responsible,’ he said.

It came as it was revealed that Labour’s decision last night to row back on its original five-year £140billion commitment was made weeks ago.

Sir Keir and Ms Reeves faced reporters on Thursday to confirm that the Green Prosperity Plan was being watered down, from £28billion a year to less than £5billion a year.

They insisted it was a decision made this week based on the state of the economy a potential future Labour government would inherit from the Tories.

However, insiders today claimed that the decision was made weeks ago and the party considered announcing the U-turn in a speech by Sir Keir in the New Year.

However, it was decided to hold it over until closer to Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s March Budget in order to tie his financial stewardship to the decision, the Times reported.

This is despite Sir Keir coming out to defend it less than a week ago.

Trade unions, environmental groups and Labour backbenchers all criticised the U-turn, while PM Rishi Sunak said it showed Labour’s credibility was ‘in tatters’.

But Ms Reeves gave a punchy defence of the change today, telling BBC Breakfast she would not ‘make any apologies’ for fiscal responsibility.

‘I’ll make no apologies for ensuring that our plan is fully costed, fully funded and deliverable within the inheritance we’re going to get,’ she said.

‘It is going to be a bleak inheritance after the damage the Conservatives have done to our economy.’

Ms Reeves gave a punchy defence of the change today, telling BBC Breakfast she would not ‘make any apologies’ for fiscal responsibility

PM Rishi Sunak, pictured out running with fellow Tory MP Johnny Mercer early this morning, said the U-turn showed Labour’s credibility was ‘in tatters’

She said: ‘In the almost three years that I’ve been shadow chancellor, I think people have heard loud and clear from me that fiscal responsibility, economic responsibility, are the most important things for me because it is absolutely essential that the public finances are managed well.

‘And when economic circumstances change, your plans have to change as well.’

Sir Keir Starmer said he believes the British public ‘appreciate’ Labour being ‘straight’ about its plans for the economy, after the party announced a major U-turn on its green spending pledge.

Speaking on a trip to the West Midlands, the Labour leader said: ‘Every family knows that they’ve had to adjust their plans. We’ve now had to adjust our plans.

‘And I think the British public appreciate us being straight and saying because of the damage the Tories have done, we can’t now do everything that we wanted to do.

‘I would much rather be straight with the British public than make a promise I can’t keep.’

Asked whether there was anything he could guarantee would be in the party manifesto come the election expected this year, Sir Keir said: ‘Since we announced the green prosperity plan, we’ve made a number of very important commitments to gigafactories, to tidal development, to Great British energy… national wealth fund… all of the commitments I’ve made on outcomes, they all remain, and they’re fully costed,’ he said.

Sir Keir added: ‘What we’re not going to do is make further announcements of further investment. Everything we’ve announced so far… all of that remains.’

Sir Keir announced on Thursday the £28billion-per-year figure would be adjusted to £23.7 billion over the course of the next parliament if his party wins the next election.

He insisted the ambitions behind Labour’s flagship green prosperity plan remain the same and recommitted to his mission to achieve clean power by 2030.

But the party’s plan to insulate homes is set to be one casualty of the climbdown, with five million expected to be completed in the first five years rather than the 19 million initially promised.

‘There is nothing we have said we will do that we are now saying we won’t do,’ Sir Keir said.

‘I don’t want to have a row about the size of a cheque. I want to have a row about the outcomes.’

The spending pledge was first made in September 2021 and Labour has blamed Tory stewardship of the economy and higher interest rates since then for the reversal.

But the rowback sparked an immediate backlash from green campaigners, as well as warnings from trade union allies, figures in the energy industry and some within the party ranks.

Emma Pinchbeck, chief executive of trade association Energy UK, warned that ‘business needs to know that politicians won’t pull the rug from under them’.

The Unite union, a major Labour donor, said the party risks ‘outsourcing their policy-making to the Conservatives’.

The Tories had seized on the original pledge as a key attack line in the run-up to an election this year, claiming Labour would ultimately have to raise taxes to meet the ‘unfunded spending spree’.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the ‘uncertainty about what a Labour government would do is a real risk to our country’s future’ following months of confusion over the fate of the policy.

Labour MPs Clive Lewis and Barry Gardiner both voiced concerns about the impact the rowback would have on the party’s ability to act on its green ambitions.

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) warned that Britain faces a ‘race against time’ with global competitors offering significant financial incentives, but added that the UK’s pitch ‘must now be how it can outsmart, not outspend, its competitors’.

Lord Blunkett, a former Labour minister, said it was better to axe the policy now than ‘let people down in government’.

But he told BBC Radio 4’s PM programme: ‘The optics, the PR, the timing could not have been worse, and I hope lessons have been learned.’

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham welcomed Labour commitments to the steel industry, but said: ‘Britain needs more, not less, investment and there is still much to do in order for Labour to gain the trust of workers impacted by net zero.

‘If Labour keep getting scared off by Tory attacks, they will end up outsourcing their policy-making to the Conservatives.’