I am delighted that today, in line with our manifesto commitments we have announced that the taxpayer subsidy for new onshore wind farms will end a year early in April 2016 and that local communities will have the final say on planning applications.

The Government recognises how important it is to reduce our carbon emissions and that our energy security requires a mix of energy sources to which onshore wind has contributed. However, it has rightly concluded that we now have enough onshore wind in the pipeline to be sufficient to meet our renewable electricity aims, and so has decided to end the generous consumer subsidy through the renewables obligation that has supported the development of onshore wind until now.

I am confident that the measures taken today offer the right balance between meeting our commitment to decarbonisation, at the lowest price whilst always ensuring our energy security, at the same time as we take into account the thoughts and feelings of local communities.

Northamptonshire is a beautiful county that has certainly taken its share of development, and as the Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change, I am pleased to have played my part in delivering the commitment to ending new public subsidies for onshore wind which was clearly set out in the Conservative election manifesto.

You can read the Written Ministerial Statement from the Department for Energy and Climate Change here.