Labour leader Ed Miliband has accused Alex Salmond of misleading voters in Dundee and Fife with “false promises” about the potential benefits of renewable energy.
In an exclusive interview with The Courier, Mr Miliband compared the SNP’s pledges on renewables to Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg’s notorious broken promise to vote against university tuition fees.
The SNP have pledged to ensure that all of Scotland’s electricity will come from renewable sources by the end of the decade.
The vision is seen as crucial for areas such as Dundee and Methil that are hoping to capitalise on the renewable market.
The SNP manifesto, Re-elect A Scottish Government Working For Scotland, claims developing the low-carbon economy will create around 130,000 jobs.
SNP finance secretary John Swinney visited the renewables company Burntisland Fabrications in Methil to unveil his party’s vision on Thursday.
But, joining Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray on the campaign trail, Mr Miliband insisted the SNP have “no strategy” for making the policy a reality.
He said, “People remember Nick Clegg making false promises at the last general election. I think people were badly misled and badly let down.
“I think what we are seeing again from the SNP is a whole bunch of false promises and one of those false promises is on renewables.”
Stressing his party’s commitment to renewables, he added, “Labour bows to nobody when it comes to determination in having a renewable strategy and a renewable revolution in Scotland and the UK.
“But actually there is no point in making these promises you can’t keep because you just increase cynicism about politics.
“So I would urge people who are thinking about this election to look at the small print of what the SNP are saying.”DishonestyMeanwhile Mr Gray described the renewables target as “dishonest” and claimed the SNP was using the policy to “hide” a lack of ideas on how to create employment.
He told The Courier, “I think the renewables policy is a stand-in for just about everything else.
“The Labour Party have got a plan for jobs and the SNP have tried to use this to hide the fact that they have no plans for jobs.”
The renewables policy has already caused controversy, with Scottish Engineering chief executive Peter Hughes claiming the target is unattainable.
Conservation group the John Muir Trust has also hit out at the proposals but Professor Stephen Salter, a renewable energy expert, has backed the plans.
Mr Swinney, the SNP candidate for Perthshire North, insisted the plan would work. He said, “Scotland has a quarter of Europe’s offshore wind and tidal potential, and a tenth of the continent’s wave power sources.
“With the proper investment in research and development, and in the engineering skills we need, we can and will turn that potential into reality.”
Mr Swinney was joined by SNP candidate for Glenrothes Tricia Marwick and SNP candidate for Kirkcaldy David Torrance.
BiFab managing director John Robertson has also backed the SNP’s renewable energy plans.
Alex Salmond claimed Dundee’s bid to become a renewable energy giant had made a “big early win” in January when Spanish energy giant Gamesa signalled intent to set up in the city and create 200 jobs.