Erecting ugly pylons across 56 miles of beautiful countryside is reckless

Baroness McIntosh of Pickering has blasted plans to erect 56 miles of electrcity pylons as wrong-headed and is urging bosses to think more carefully about the natural assets they are dealing with

If we are going to be able to look the next generation in the eye as we hand over the planet to them as they graduate into becoming its custodians, we must pull together towards a cleaner, more sustainable, environmentally friendly society – of that there is no question. It isn’t a debate to be had anymore, it is an imperative.

But that imperative in and of itself does not keep the lights on, and we remain reliant upon powerstations and the National Grid to keep our homes and businesses powered up.

Yet, also, few could disagree with Baroness McIntosh of Pickering when she pushes back hard at the prospect of a 56-mile chain of pylons to be gouged into the ground between Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire.

The peer is quite right to object to what she calls ‘unsightly’ pylons, because that is precisely what they are. What is more, she underscores the vulnerability of overground cabling which has, on more occasions than one can recall, fallen victim to the elements during times of the year when we need power the most.

Given the profits these firms are making, it is not unreasonable to ask that they protect the natural beauty as they go about their work, which it would be churlish to suggest is not needed. This is much-needed work that is actually in the national interest, but it cannot be at the expense of the splendour we enjoy in our countryside.