adminSpeculations surrounding renewable energy indicate that renewable energy was growing faster while under the National government than it is doing under Labour leadership. AAP FactCheck Investigation will be explaining the validity of this statement in this article.
Simeon Brown of the National Party argues that while they were in government, the renewables witnessed a 16.5 percent growth. In contrast, the current leadership has only recorded a 0.5 percent increase in three years. The National Party attributes a significant growth in renewables was under its leadership and that the only growth that the Labour government has recorded is also because of their efforts.
The Labour Party was projecting the achievement of a 100 percent shift to renewables in 2035, although it later on adjusted this period to 2030 if it gets back to power. However, through Simeon Brown, the National Party explained that there had been a slow transition to renewables, with the fastest rate being when they were in power.
AAP FactCheck took Brown’s words and started investigating the validity of the statements. The agency proved that the increase that Brown had quoted was true according to the dates. It was also able to prove a 0.5 percent growth since the Labour Party entered office in 2017. The high increase in renewable energy when the National Party was in power depended on both hydropower and geothermal power sources.
The Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE) reported that the subsequent drop in renewable energy uptake in 2019 was due to drought, forcing hydropower’s attention to shift to coal. The coal-powered plants topped up the supply of electricity to counter the diminishing production from hydropower plants.
Analysts advise against supporting the idea that the National Party facilitated the quick uptake of renewables, saying it will cause political tumult in the country unjustifiably. The experts argue that the country’s electricity situation has witnessed fluctuations that should not alarm the opposition to take credit for their good season in leadership.
AAP FactCheck argues that Brown should not use favorable statistics to demean the ruling party since no significant policy changes would inform a severe drop in the transition to renewables. The agency admits that drought must factor in the statistics before judging the Labour Party for its failures. In conclusion, Brown’s statement is partially true on the statistical part but incorrect in taking credit. If anything is very true, then it is the figures that Brown gave and his bias in claiming the Labour Party was delaying renewables’ uptake without considering the natural disaster.
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