WE have been warned about the paucity of spare capacity that will be available for the National Grid this winter – again.

We get this warning year after year and the issue seems to be getting worse rather than better.

We must be careful with what we use, ensuring we do not waste energy, but this issue goes much deeper than that.

We need to examine our energy infrastructure and ensure that the money we invest in it is not wasted. We must stop lavishing huge amounts of investment on ineffective wind farms and we have to restart outdated, mothballed power stations to ensure the lights stay on.

We need a thorough, sensible discussion about how we get our power, not just on fracking, solar and wind, but also on new; cleaner coal power stations and the expansion of nuclear facilities. Some questions may prove controversial, but they should still be asked.

For too long politicians have been avoiding this question and kicking it down the road, while repeatedly patching up the broken dam.

Enough of this, we need to develop and invest in a long term solution before it is too late.

Jonathan Arnott MEP, Ukip North-East.