Unite leader Sharon Graham has called on Sir Keir Starmer to sack Ed Miliband, branding the Energy Secretary’s approach to net zero a “disaster”.
Ms Graham accused Mr Miliband of being “completely irresponsible” with Britain’s energy security after it was confirmed yesterday that the Lindsey oil refinery – source of 10% of the UK’s petrol – will close, with 125 job losses.
Asked if it was time for him to go, she told The Telegraph: “I think that he has not made a good fist of it. I think maybe it is time for him to think that he should move out of this position, because for me, we don’t have time. I’ve got two oil refineries shutting now in less than a year.”
She added: “These people here have been told that their jobs are going, yet we know that we need to have fuel in Britain. Where is the money going into this? Now if it’s the Treasury that’s stopping it, then maybe we need somebody that’s more vocal for these jobs.
"We need somebody that is going to say ‘we back Britain and I am demanding that we get this money into this area’. Because so far it’s been an absolute disaster zone.”
Ms Graham later said: “Ed is a very good guy, a nice person and all of that, but the difficulty here is he doesn’t seem to be grasping that you cannot let go of one rope until you’ve got hold of another."
Mr Miliband has ordered an investigation into the collapse of Prax Group, which owned Lindsey. Energy minister Michael Shanks said: “Our thoughts are with the workers, their families and the community who have been badly let down by Lindsey oil refinery’s owners… We remain hopeful that a solution will be found that supports jobs on the site long-term.”