People in Mid Wales have been urged to fight the "deluge of proposals" for windfarms. Welshpool-based campaigner Dan Munford has collected almost 2,000 signatures. Worried residents across Wales have been signing up to fight the expected increase in the turbines. Many have voiced fears that any such increase could have disastrous effects on tourism.

Centrica, which is raising 2.2 billion pounds to help fund its proposed 25 percent stake in nuclear power generator British Energy, said it was "revisiting the economics of wind farms given rising raw material and credit costs." The company, which hopes to start full operation of its new Lynn & Inner Dowsing wind farms off the coast of eastern England by the end of the year, has yet to approve investment for three more farms that it plans to build in the North Sea.

Lewis Wind Power’s project to create the UK’s largest onshore wind farm would support only 70 jobs ‘at best’ - and not 233 posts as alleged by the company. This is the claim in a study carried out on behalf of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) by global real estate adviser DTZ Consulting, concerning the economic assessment of the plan for the Barvas Moor where it is proposed to build 181 wind turbines. David Hodkinson, Lewis Wind Power director, said: “We look forward to studying the contents of the report, but do wonder why RSPB is having to broaden its campaign against the Lewis Wind Farm away from the bird interests that are at the heart of its charitable status and Royal Charter.”

Wind farm developer Eneco has been criticised for failing to consult tourism bosses over plans to site turbines in Poole Bay. The proposed Navitus Bay wind park, which would see turbines of around 311 feet tall situated between 10 and 17 miles out to sea, would have a major impact on Bournemouth and Poole's tourism industry.

A cross-industry group called the Powerline is to launch a scathing attack on the Bill, due to be given Royal Assent later this year, through advertising and social media. The business leaders are furious at what they see as the energy Bill's over-reliance on costly renewable energy at the expensive of traditional and lower-cost energy sources such as coal-fired and gas power stations.

Question marks were raised yesterday over plans to make council-owned land in Northumberland available to wind farm developers. In a move aimed at both demonstrating the county council's `green' credentials and raising much-needed income, executive members agreed in principle to the use of the authority's land assets for wind energy generation.

Anti-windfarm activists are claiming a victory after homes near turbines had their council tax bills cut. Campaigners in Cumbria are viewing the Government decision as a step towards an admission that wind turbines do affect properties and their value.

Leaderdale and Melrose councillor John Paton-Day has called for a halt to wind farm developments in the Borders. The Lib Dem from Earlston was reacting to a letter in TheSouthern last week (October 29 issue) from Mr S. Wilson from Blairgowrie, who described how he had advised a party of 20 hillwalkers from Austria not to visit the region because "the hills have been destroyed by numerous wind farms with a lot more to come".

Jeremy Nicholson, director of the Energy Intensive Users Group, which represents major companies employing hundreds of thousands of workers. He was speaking after new figures showed that during the latest cold snap wind turbines produced less than two per cent of the nation's electricity.