Claire Coutinho warns against 'net zero leviathan of central planning', as speech targeted by protestors

clock • 6 min read
Credit: James Murray
Image:

Credit: James Murray

Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary argues it is better for firms to 'live with some uncertainty' than suffer from strict government planning, but speech overshadowed by repeated protests

Claire Coutinho's address to the Innovation Zero conference in London faced repeated disruption this morning, as protestors attempted to shout down the Secretary of State's speech and accused the government...

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