23 March, 2006

ALISTAIR Carmichael, MP for Orkney and Shetland, yesterday (Wednesday) welcomed the Chancellor's budget announcement about a new National Institute for Energy Technologies.

The institute is to be funded by private investment and will aim to bring a new level of focus, ambition and industrial collaboration to the UK's work in the field of energy science and engineering.

Commenting on the budget, Alistair Carmichael said: "The Chancellor is right to think that the UK could be a world leader in energy technologies. And it is companies in Orkney and Shetland who are leading the way for the rest of the country.

"I shall be looking closely at what is proposed - whether the reliance on private investment is adequate, and how companies in the northern isles developing renewable solutions can benefit from the proposals.

"However, the budget was also a missed opportunity. The Chancellor peppered it with inadequate gestures aimed at grabbing cheap headlines, but it has failed to tackle the unfair tax system, he has failed to face up to the pensions crisis, and he has failed to address the problem of personal debt."