Miliband handed sweeping energy powers as Burnham reshapes devolution settlement

The Energy Secretary has been granted new powers to override local planning decisions on renewable energy projects, according to the Daily Express. The move follows legislation passed last month that centralises authority over strategic infrastructure in Whitehall.

The Express frames the development as a "power grab", while other coverage focuses on wider constitutional questions. Separately, the Daily Express reports that the Prime Minister has received proposals for closer alignment with European structures through a "European Confederation" framework - a looser arrangement than EU membership that would involve coordination on security and trade.

The energy powers mark a reversal of the devolution settlement built over two decades. Planning authority for major projects previously rested with local councils and devolved assemblies, on the principle that communities should decide what gets built near them. The new arrangement places that authority with a Secretary of State whose brief is national energy security and net zero targets. Whether a community wants the infrastructure becomes a secondary question to whether the grid needs it.

The European Confederation proposal has appeared in policy circles before, most recently in 2023 French discussions about a two-tier European architecture. It offers regulatory alignment and security cooperation without the full legal architecture of the EU. The question it raises is the same one that defined the Brexit vote: who decides which rules apply, and whether the ballot box can reach the decisions that matter most. If Britain signs treaties that bind future governments on trade or standards, the vote becomes a choice between which coalition of governments writes the rules - not whether rules exist at all.

What to watch: whether the energy planning powers face legal challenge from devolved administrations, and whether the European Confederation proposal advances beyond papers to negotiation. The first planning decision taken under the new powers will show how far ministerial authority now reaches.