Sir Keir Starmer is under pressure to revive Corbyn's pledge to renationalize the energy industry

Unite, Labor's biggest financial backer, called on Sir Keir to «put an end to the scandal.» energy system. Credit: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire

Union leaders are pressuring Sir Keir Starmer to renationalize the energy sector for £200bn for the taxpayers if Labor is elected.

Unite unions. The Labor Party's biggest financial backer publicly urged the party to re-adopt the policy.

Sharon Graham, general secretary of Unite, said: «The time has come to put an end to the scandal with our energy system, which allows speculators to pocket billions while workers and communities are fooled.»

Jeremy Corbyn promised to transfer state-owned energy infrastructure in the 2019 Labor Party manifesto, but his successor Sir Keir abandoned the plan.

A re-nationalization of the UK's power grid would cost taxpayers £196bn, according to Unite. .

However, Ms Graham argued that a nationalized energy sector would save consumers £45bn last year, equivalent to £1,800 of the average household bill.

Lawrence Slade, Executive Director of the Energy Networks Association, an industry organization . , called the numbers «fundamentally misleading.»

British Gas was privatized in 1986 and National Grid was created in 1990.

Unite wants public scrutiny of the entire UK energy network, including North Offshore oil and gas production, power generation, transmission and distribution networks and residential suppliers.

It claimed that energy companies last year made a £45bn profit that could have been kept in public hands and used to curb inflation.

Former Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn has vowed to nationalize the energy sector if elected, a plan abandoned by his successor Keir Starmer. Photo: Stéphane Rousseau/Pennsylvania

Based on the «book value» of British energy companies, the nationalization would cost £90bn. However, this cost will more than double based on the market value of the businesses involved.

Mr Slade said: “A complete restructuring of the energy sector would be costly and unnecessary. This will result in significant disruptions and delays in meeting the UK's legally binding decarbonization targets.

“The numbers in the report are fundamentally misleading, the regulatory regime that Ofgem oversees is strictly regulating the revenue generated by the chains.&# 34;

Last year, Labor laid out plans to launch Great British Energy, the UK's state-owned green energy company, which would operate in a similar fashion to France's EDF.

> A Labor spokesman said: «Keir is clear made it clear that we will not ideologize in these matters. Everything we do will be growth driven, and we will be guided by what benefits taxpayers the most and what benefits consumers. Spending billions on shareholder compensation is not our priority, every penny of taxpayer money we spend will go towards lowering bills, ensuring energy security and combating climate change"