It's Only Wales, After All

There are, of course, any number of good reasons why Her Majesty's Government would reject plans for a tidal lagoon which could supply power for a hundred and fifty thousand homes. The reason given by the Secretary of State for Profits, viz. a sudden access of Government concern about the next generation's tax and energy bills, need hardly detain us. The fact that the proposed site is in Wales, which most Conservatives probably still think of as that place where they burn down holiday cottages, may not be altogether irrelevant; although when faced with a choice between green crap and sustainable uranium, the present administration has been nothing if not consistent. The project was first proposed in 2011 and backed by the Bullingdon Club, who were probably vaguely aware that Wales is nowhere near the Home Counties; so it is entirely possible that the rejection stems in part from Tumbledown Tessie's wish to impress her political intelligence upon her predecessors. The most likely reason, however, is that the project was strongly backed by an independent report whose conclusions were tainted by the opinion of mere experts. Indeed, the Secretary of State for Profits admitted that he had spent eighteen months leaving no stone unturned in his search for excuses to disregard it.