Kevin Lang pledges fight to bring green jobs to Leith

4.00.00pm GMT Fri 5th Mar 2010

Liberal Democrat Kevin Lang today pledged to place his fight to bring new green jobs to Leith at the very heart of his campaign to become the new Member of Parliament for Edinburgh North & Leith.

Last month, a major report from Scottish Enterprise rated Leith as the best site for the manufacture of offshore wind turbines in the Firth of Forth. The report concluded that such an investment could see 400 new green jobs created in the manufacture of 600 turbines.

Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg recently joined Kevin Lang at the Leith Docks to highlight its suitability as a place for the manufacture of wind turbines and to launch the local Lib Dem campaign to bring green jobs to Leith.

Addressing the Scottish Liberal Democrat conference during a debate on green energy, Kevin Lang warned that without the Westminster and Scottish Governments working together and without urgent investment, the jobs associated with the manufacture of wind turbines could be lost to other European countries.

Speaking during the debate, Kevin said,

"We can never underestimate the potential of our country when it comes to renewable energy. Our weather, our coastline, our geography and our people all mark Scotland out as a place with the potential to make a huge contribution in green energy. If we fail to grasp that potential, we will simply fall behind and lose our competitive position to other European countries.

"One of the problems is that there is no manufacturing site for the production of wind turbines here in Scotland. However, the Scottish Enterprise report scored Leith the highest of sites considered for a new manufacturing site. It was a fantastic boost for the port, which has a long and proud history, but is an area which has suffered greatly from Labour's recession with rising unemployment and job insecurity.

"We now have to turn this potential for manufacturing into reality. If we do, it is a win win for our local community - new green jobs locally and more green renewable energy to help reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and reduce our carbon emissions.

"That is why I am placing a commitment to fight to bring these new green jobs to Leith at the very heart of my campaign."