President of Royal Society Comments on Future Use of Coal in the UK. (March 12, 2008)

At the Adam Smith Institute conference on "The Future of Utilities" Britain's business secretary John Hutton (pictured) told his audience:

Fossil fuels will continue to play an important role in ensuring the flexibility of the electricity generation system. Electricity demand fluctuates continually, but the fluctuations can be very pronounced during winter, requiring rapid short-term increases in production. Neither wind nor nuclear can fulfil this role. We therefore will continue to need this back up from fossil fuels, with coal a key source of that flexibility.

Commenting on Mr Hutton's statement the President of the Royal Society, Martin Rees said: "If fossil fuels remain a big part of the UK's energy future then it is crucial that we develop and deploy carbon capture and storage technology. The world is not going to stop burning coal any time soon. The UK should seize the chance to get a head-start in developing the CCS technologies which will be needed worldwide. Kingsnorth is a test of the Government's resolve to show international leadership in the drive towards cleaner energy."