In a BBC Radio Stoke interview, MEP Dan Dalton - conservative UK MEP and member of the European Parliament Ceramics Forum - called for equal carbon leakage protection for all energy intensive industries, including ceramics, under the review of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme post 2020. These measures are essential for the continued competitiveness of sectors at risk of carbon leakage such as tiles and bricks.
Listen to the radio interview (above issue discussed at 1h10)
MEP Dalton recently visited Ibstock Brick, the UK's largest brickmaker. The visit was to Ibstock’s Chesterton plant, which has recently undergone a £22 million (€30 million) investment in response to rising energy prices and increasing product demand. The visit was arranged to hear the sector’s concerns on ETS phase 4 proposals, specifically the tiered approach to free allocation which undermines jobs and investment in UK/EU brick manufacturing.
As mentioned in the above interview, MEP Dalton has also visited Lucideon, a materials technology company, experiencing first-hand an industry that has both traditional and high-tech applications.
MEP Dan Dalton visits Ibstock Brick's Chesterton site