Great British Energy’s flagship solar scheme is under fire after it emerged the first wave of panels installed on English schools were sourced from Chinese companies, despite the company’s vow to champion ethical supply chains.
According to the BBC, the first 11 schools to benefit from GB Energy’s new £200 million programme bought solar panels from Aiko and Longi – two of China’s biggest producers.
This has sparked concern from campaigners and MPs due to alleged links between Chinese solar supply chains and forced labour in Xinjiang.
Labour MP Sarah Champion said: “I’m really excited about the principle of GB Energy. But it’s taxpayers’ money and we should not be supporting slave labour with that money. And wherever possible, we should be supporting good working practices and buy British if we can.”
She warned that abuses in renewable supply chains are “insidious and hard to root out” and called on ministers to ban known human rights offenders from winning public contracts.
GB Energy responded by insisting it would “lead the way in ethical supply chains” and said all contracts under the solar scheme complied with the UK’s Modern Slavery Act. A spokesperson told the BBC: “There is no place for forced labour or unethical practices in the UK’s energy transition.”
The company said it is introducing a statutory duty to prevent modern slavery and reviewing supplier transparency and disclosure standards.
Chinese solar panels used by GB Energy appeared first on Energy Live News.