Former US President Donald Trump has weighed back into British politics this evening, savaging the British government’s approach to wind power.
In his first TV interview with foreign media for over a year, Donald Trump spoke to former UKIP leader Nigel Farage for his show on GB News.
Commenting on wind energy, Trump said, “I think wind is ridiculous. I think wind is a horrible thing for Scotland, and I got to see it, because I own magnificent properties in Scotland and in Ireland. And I look at these magnificent fields with horrible windmills all over them, and windmills is a nice term”.
Claiming that wind power is the most expensive form of energy, and one which can’t work without subsidy, Trump suggested that after a couple of years, wind turbines, “start to rust, and wear out, and look terrible, look even worse”. He also suggested they “kill all the birds”.
Turning his guns on British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, Trump told GB News that, “If Boris is going heavy into wind, he is wrong, he is making a big mistake”.
“In the UK it is all over the place. You fly over the place, and I say what a shame what they have done. And you know the environmentalists are liking this stuff. I think they hate the world”.
Referring to his relationship with Boris Johnson, Trump said, “I like him. I have always got along with him. He has got a little bit more on the liberal side, but I tell you, with energy, I am surprised that he would allow that to happen, because you have one of the most beautiful countries in the world. And you are destroying it with all these wind turbines all over the place”.
Doubling down on his criticism, the former US President repeated his dislike of the Aberdeen Bay Wind Farm, describing it as “disgusting to look at”. Trump previously purchased the Menie estate near Aberdeen.
During the interview, the former US President appeared to receive some support from Nigel Farage for his views on wind turbines, with the former UKIP leader commenting, “Well I have to say that I am not a great fan of them”.
The UK wind industry is said to comprise over 11,000 turbines, the sixth largest number in the world. In 2020, wind power contributed a quarter of the UK’s energy generation. Wind is now the largest source of renewable energy in the UK with the government planning a further expansion of offshore capacity in the next decade.
Previous polling has suggested that British voters don’t share Donald Trump’s views on wind. In May 2020, a Public Attitudes Tracker published by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy showed that offshore wind had the backing of 81% of people, with onshore wind close behind at 77%.
