Controversial windfarms could be forced on East Anglian communities under new government plans which would ride roughshod over local objections. Energy minister Ed Miliband, speaking ahead of the launch of tomorrow's Renewable Energy Strategy, said wind turbines had to go somewhere and it was the government's job to "persuade" opponents to accept them. ..."We understand the objections. They can be legitimate objections but we do have a job of persuading people that we have got to get renewable energy somewhere," he said.

The Glenfiddich distillery in Dufftown will host a major public meeting in Moray against plans to site a wind farm in the heart of the whisky trail. ...Tourists have flocked to Moray's famous whisky trail for decades, but owners of the distillery fear visitor numbers could dry up if the plans for nearly 60 turbines get the go ahead on the nearby Glenfiddich estate which is owned by London financier Christopher Morran.

The Confederation of British Industry is lobbying the government to cut back its plans for expanding wind power, arguing that it would be better to focus on building more nuclear reactors so the UK does not have to fall back on volatile and carbon intensive gas supplies. The business group will today unveil a report called Decision Time in a bid to dramatically change the UK's energy policy.

A controversial decision to grant planning consent for a wind farm near Yarm has been put on hold by the Government. Government Office North East has been asked to take a fresh look at the application by Stockton MP Dari Taylor and could call the decision in. This could result in a public inquiry into the plans for three 125metre wind turbines to be built on land between Seamer and Hilton.

A church in the Northamptonshire village of Crick will become ground zero for a giant wind farm. That is the claim of the anti-wind farm campaign group, Stop the Spin, which this week addressed a packed meeting in East Haddon to discuss fears about the proliferation of wind turbines in the county.

Plans to build two huge wind turbines in the Fen countryside have been thrown out - after the Ministry of Defence (MoD) warned they would put air safety in danger. The blades of the identical turbines at French Farm, Thorney, near Peterborough, would have reached 100 metres high, and despite being 16 miles from RAF Wittering and 23 miles from RAF Cottesmore, the MoD objected on safety grounds.

Protestors fighting proposals to site a new wind farm in North Devon are celebrating after plans to build 15 turbines were withdrawn. Scottish Power was looking to build the 410ft high turbines and substation in the Chilla Valley ...But the energy firm has now said the site is unsuitable.

Thousands of homes in east Rugby and surrounding villages will get mailshots this week outlining plans for an eight-turbine wind farm near the M1 motorway. Your Energy Ltd is in the final stages of public consultation before its controversial wind farm blueprint goes before a council planning committee next month.

Yesterday, Barrow Borough Council's planning committee was presented with a draft scoping opinion about the project. ...Barrow's mayor and a member of the planning committee, Councillor Dorothy Dawes, said: "That's just another hideous thing on the landscape. "They produce very little electricity and they don't produce anything when they're not working."

A Longtown farm has been chosen as the site of a massive new wind-farm hosting Cumbria's tallest turbines - nearly three times as high as Carlisle's Civic Centre. ...But at 125m high, the six turbines which are at the heart of the proposal are already causing concern among some locals. Soaring 375ft into the air, the turbines would be visible for miles around, dwarfing most of the other wind turbines in the county.

The secretary of state for energy and climate change Ed Miliband has responded to a set of challenging questions on energy and the landscape from the Campaign to Protect Rural England. Among questions he has answered, Miliband clarified his controversial statement that it should "be socially unacceptable to be against wind turbines in your area - like not wearing a seatbelt or driving past a zebra crossing."

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) like the Lake District national park could be the sites of new energy infrastructure including wind farms, Ed Miliband has suggested. Asked if wind farms could be considered in AONBs, Mr Miliband said: "In exceptional circumstances, it may be possible for some limited development to take place without unacceptable impacts on these important sites."

The Scottish Parliament's economy, energy and tourism committee this week called for a speedy approval of the Beauly to Denny line despite nearly 20,000 objections. ...Developers say the upgrade is needed to carry renewable energy from schemes in the Highlands and Islands.

Plans to build three 125m-tall wind turbines near two villages have been given the go-ahead. Broadview Energy has been given permission by Stockton Borough Council planning committee to build the wind farm on land between Seamer and Hilton, between Stokesley and Yarm. ...A total of 200 representations of support and 410 letters of objection had been submitted to Stockton Borough Council.

Plans for a wind farm in a picturesque North Dorset setting were sensationally thrown out on July 2. Despite a recommendation to approve the six 120m-high turbines at Silton, near Gillingham, district councillors unanimously voted to refuse the application.

A controversial wind farm near Yarm has been approved at the second time of asking. Stockton Council's planning committee gave the green light yesterday for three 125-metre wind turbines to be built on land between Seamer and Hilton.

Renewables trade body the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) said that offshore wind farm construction had gathered pace, matching that of onshore projects for the first time. "But this progress has been accompanied by a sharp increase in capital costs which is a concern for continuation of that success story.

The scale of public opposition to Europe's largest onshore wind farm proposed for the Shetland mainland has been underlined after about 70 campaigners handed in a petition of more than 3600 signatures demanding the plans be scrapped. ...The signatures, representing almost 20% of Shetland's population over the age of 12, were given to Shetland Island Council convenor Sandy Cluness.

The isle has rocked to vibrations from work off the area's coast as power giants Vattenfall build a huge wind farm project, writes Tom Betts. The loud bangs came from the Sea Jack vessel which is currently pile-driving the sea bed in order to install the foundations. The noise was heard last night (Monday, June29) across Thanet from Birchington as far round the coast as Broadstairs and even Ramsgate.

High Court battle has been launched in a bid to prevent four wind turbines being built in the Derbyshire countryside. Plans for the turbine generators and a substation at Carsington Pastures - next to Carsington Water - were initially turned down. Applicant West Coast Energy then lodged an appeal and at a subsequent public inquiry a Government inspector ruled the effects on the nearby national park and two conservation areas were outweighed by the benefits of creating renewable energy.