Overview

• The government’s first national workforce strategy for clean power identifies 31 priority occupations and proposes five new Technical Excellence Colleges, with £2.5 million for skills pilots in Cheshire, Lincolnshire and Pembrokeshire.
• Up to £18–£20 million from the UK and Scottish governments will fund bespoke retraining for North Sea oil and gas workers, with an expanded energy skills passport to ease moves into nuclear and grid roles.
• Ministers propose a fair work charter tying public support to good pay, union recognition and conditions, and plan to close offshore loopholes so clean energy workers receive protections such as the national minimum wage beyond UK territorial seas.
• Government modelling projects employment in clean energy to double to about 860,000 by 2030, with regional estimates including up to 60,000 jobs in Scotland and roughly 20,000 in Wales, alongside forecasts for the East of England and the North West.
• Major unions and industry bodies welcomed the clarity on skills but warn training alone will not create jobs without stronger public investment and domestic supply chains, even as ministers cite more than £50 billion in private capital attracted since last July.