The plan recognises changes need to happen and we welcome the Government’s plans in what is only a positive move for our future.

Of course, in the North West, Greater Manchester has its own ambitious target of 2038 whilst we’re very conscious there are active discussions about targets in Cumbria, Lancashire and other parts of the North West region we serve.

As the power network operator for the North West, we have a major role to play and we’re in the process of investing in our network to create the capacity needed so both Greater Manchester and Cumbria can hit their ambitious early targets.

In fact, we’ve committed £63.5m to help the North West reach net zero whilst identifying several key strategic projects around the region to help meet the growing electricity demand, some of which, we are already underway with.

We’re also at a crucial stage of business plans where currently, we’re asking people for their opinions to help shape the region’s energy future for the next five years.

Net zero is a huge part of our plans and despite the current circumstances, we’re still proceeding with our engagement as we’re holding virtual forums with key stakeholders in Cumbria, Lancashire and Greater Manchester.

We’re speaking to stakeholders as we want to gather their views on how they see their region hitting the net zero targets.

Tuesday was a tremendous day for a green future.

We’ll continue to invest and lead the region to its net zero targets.

Of course, it’s a challenge, but it’s one we’ll embrace and our prior investments in critical infrastructure have helped ensure we’re on the right path to a net zero future.

Peter Emery, CEO, Electricity North West