Wind turbine factory sit-in workers accuse Ed Miliband of green failure

Steven Morris
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 21 July 2009 19.05 BST

The government's green credentials were called into question today by workers staging a sit-in at a wind turbine factory that is due to close this month.
Around 30 workers facing redundancy took over the management suite at the Vestas factory on the Isle of Wight. Police reinforcements were brought in but workers claimed they would not leave until the government stepped in to save the factory and more than 500 jobs.
One of those barricaded in with sleeping bags and enough food to last days, gave his name as Michael. He argued that it was "crazy" for environment secretary Ed Miliband to be making "statement after statement" about green energy but standing by as the factory closed down. "It would be a tiny step financially to keep this factory open, but it would be a huge statement about the government's commitment to the green economy," he said.
The Newport factory is due to close at the end of the month. The Danish company that owns it has refused to comment on the protest, but when the cuts were announced it cited a "lack of political initiatives" and an obstructive planning system.
The protest comes soon after Miliband claimed the green revolution will create 1.2 million jobs by 2020. A spokeswoman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change said: "The UK has a strong future in wind energy. In our renewable energy strategy we earmarked up to £120m to support investment in the development of the offshore wind industry."