"Instead, the government needs to recognise that the accelerating collapse of manufacturing is a national emergency. It needs to lower energy costs, and if that means re-opening the North Sea or even fracking so be it."

As I recall the UK still produces about half " it's" gas except it isn't "it's" because production is owned by private companies who sell on the open (European) market. Power prices are tied to the price of gas...and because the UK buys on the spot market on a " super-efficient" no-storage capacity just-in-time "philosophy" it also pays a huge premium to buy, ummm... "it's own" gas too.

In other words the above is all bollox. Increasing fracking and North sea oil production will do nothing to reduce UK energy costs but will merely give private companies more profit.

Nationalising production and setting long term contracts would be the only way. Can you really see that happening in the already insanely privatised UK which is about to give the reigns to the corporate interests frog King Farage who will finish the job?