Gower Labour Candidate Tonia Antoniazzi tackles Byron Davies on the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon

In his most recent newsletter, Byron Davies, the Gower Conservative Candidate for the General Election said that he was ‘looking forward’ to fighting for residents to ensure among other things, the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon.

It has been well-reported that the Swansea tidal lagoon programme offers a significant economic opportunity for Gower, Swansea and Wales and it seems strange that Gower’s MP has said that he was ‘looking forward’ to fighting for a project that Swansea has been waiting for with baited breath for over a year.

Last January, former energy minister Charles Hendry published his findings into the proposed project off the coast of Swansea, saying that it should be the first in a series of larger lagoons around the UK coast - creating a new £15bn industry in tidal energy.

Four months later, and Swansea is still waiting for the decision of the UK Government.

Tonia Antoniazzi, Labour’s candidate for Gower expressed surprise at Byron Davies’ stance. “ Rather than look ahead to a fight, Byron and the Tory Government should have delivered by now on the promises made to invest in the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon.

Having read the Hendry report in detail, and having worked on a Welsh Baccalaureate project with my pupils on the issue of tidal lagoons, it is clear that this is an investment in our future generations, our children and our grandchildren. This is about employment and opportunities in Gower and Wales and it is a lifeline to Wales.

As an old proverb says: Promises are like the full moon, if they are not kept at once they diminish day by day. There is no never ending pot of private investment that can keep the project on hold until Teresa May’s Government decides to invest. The BBC reported in February this year that Tidal Lagoon Power needed an answer within 6 – 8 weeks. If we do not have a commitment from the Tories in the next three months then we are under threat of losing this investment. “