When the Lights Go Out in the ‘Renewable Powerhouse’ – Why Reform is Right on Net Zero

Imagine living in a town ringed by 50 wind turbines, hailed by politicians as a “renewable powerhouse,” and yet you can’t keep the lights on. That’s not a hypothetical. It’s the reality for Crookwell,New South Wales, where residents are being forced to rely on diesel generators because their single fragile power line keeps failing.It is the great irony of our age: the more we surround ourselves with wind turbines and solar farms, the less secure our energy supply seems to become. Crookwell is a warning to Britain of what happens when governments chase targets instead of building resilient systems.

Crookwell’s Lesson for the UK

Despite a forest of turbines, Crookwell can’t power its own homes. Why? Because renewables plug into the high-voltage transmission grid — not the local distribution lines that communities actually rely on. When that one line breaks, no amount of turbines can help. Locals sit in the dark, football matches abandoned, medical devices stalled, businesses ruined.This is Net Zero in practice: diesel generators saving the day in a “green powerhouse.”Sound familiar? In Britain, we already see the same mismatch. Wind farms across Yorkshire and Scotland are routinely curtailed because the grid can’t take the power. Meanwhile, ordinary people pay £1 billion a year in “constraint payments” to switch turbines off.

The Scottish Stampede

The same reckless approach is being forced onto Scotland’s seas. The Scottish Government wants 40GW of offshore wind by 2040. Fishermen — who’ve sustainably harvested food from these waters for generations — warn it will devastate marine ecosystems and drive fleets out of business.Elspeth Macdonald of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation calls it a “stampede” and a “gamble”. Once again, ideology tramples over real communities, real livelihoods, and even food security.

The Battery Mirage

Meanwhile, developers like BayWa boast of 500MW “megabatteries” in South Lanarkshire. The sales pitch is grand: “grid stability,” “unlocking renewables,” “accelerating the transition.” But scratch the surface and the truth is clear:These batteries last a few hours, not days.They depend on imported lithium, cobalt, and rare earths.They scar landscapes and pose fire risks.They don’t solve the fundamental problem: Britain is dismantling reliable AC generation and replacing it with intermittent DC power sources, without the storage or grid to make it work.

Why Reform UK is Right

Reform is often painted as “anti-green.” In truth, we are pro-reality. We don’t oppose clean energy — we oppose the fantasy that wind turbines and batteries alone can power a modern industrial nation.Net Zero, as imposed by Labour, the SNP, and the Conservatives before them, is:Unrealistic – The technology to deliver it doesn’t exist at scale.Unfair – Ordinary people pay the bill while elites virtue-signal.Unsafe – Blackouts, curtailment costs, diesel back-up and fragile grids prove it.Reform’s alternative is straightforward:Invest in grid-first upgrades before piling on more renewables.Back SMRs and domestic gas to provide stable, affordable, sovereign energy.Support rooftop solar and microgrids that actually benefit communities instead of sacrificing farmland and fishing grounds.Scrap the carbon budget straitjacket that lets unelected quangos dictate policy over Parliament.

The Bottom Line

From Crookwell’s diesel irony to Scotland’s fishing revolt, the evidence is everywhere: Net Zero is not delivering security, fairness, or sovereignty. It is a political vanity project, and it is failing.Reform UK stands alone in saying what millions already know: it’s time to slam the brakes, scrap the fantasy, and rebuild Britain’s energy system on reality, not ideology.Because if we don’t, Crookwell today will be Doncaster, Glasgow, or London tomorrow. And when the lights go out, no politician’s slogan will keep us warm.