Sir Tony Blair’s think tank has warned that Labour’s claim that net zero will create 650,000 industrial jobs is vastly overstated

The Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI) said investing in green technology was unlikely to reverse the long-term decline of British industry and warned that ministers must not “over-state the job opportunities from green manufacturing”.

The think tank added that it was a “mistake” to let net zero dominate the government’s entire economic strategy as it would deliver only a meagre boost to growth.

It said: “It must be a pillar of the UK’s growth strategy, but it cannot be the whole strategy.”

Labour’s election manifesto promised a “Green Prosperity Plan” that “will create 650,000 jobs across the country by 2030”.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has also said that the Government’s net zero plan will involve “backing our proud manufacturing, coastal and oil and gas communities with good jobs, skills and private sector investment”.

However, the TBI report cast doubt on the plausibility of Labour’s targets. It said green manufacturing was likely to employ only 425,000 people by 2050 in a “best-case scenario” – a third less than than promised and decades later.

A government spokesman said: “Our industrial strategy will also take advantage of the UK’s unique strengths and untapped potential, enabling our already world-leading services and manufacturing sectors to adapt and grow, with high quality, well-paid jobs.”