Thousands of new wind turbines could be built across the UK as part of a £100bn investment in renewable energy that could create hundreds of thousands of new “green collar” jobs, Gordon Brown announced today.

The prime minister unveiled what he described as a “green revolution” and “the most dramatic change in energy policy since the advent of nuclear power”.

He wants to build up Britain’s clean power supply in order to reach the EU-imposed target of producing 15% of the country’s energy from renewable sources by 2020. This will require £100bn of investment from the private sector, which the government will encourage with financial incentives due to be announced later by the business secretary, John Hutton.

In a speech to an energy summit at the Tate Modern art gallery in central London, Brown said that the North Sea, which has passed its peak in terms of oil and gas supplies, will be turned into “the equivalent for wind power of what the Gulf of Arabia is for oil”. Wind turbines will also be built inland, but with sensitivity towards local communities.

Householders will be encouraged to reduce their bills through energy-saving incentives due to be announced later this summer, said Brown. Within a decade he said he wanted every householder able to do so to fit loft or cavity wall insulation, install low-energy light bulbs, and use low-energy consumer goods.

The government will also shortly begin a new advertising campaign showing people what steps they can take to reduce their energy and fuel bills – steps such as turning appliances off rather than leaving them on standby, and fitting new shower heads.

In the autumn, said Brown, the government will consult on a new plan aimed at changing the way in which energy companies operate – encouraging them not to supply ever more units of electricity and gas, but to make profits from reducing, not increasing, demand.

“This is a green revolution in the making,” Brown said. “It will be a tenfold increase on our current deployment of renewables, and a 300% increase on our existing plans: the most dramatic change in our energy policy since the advent of nuclear power.”

He said it would mean that by 2020 renewables would account for over 30% of electricity supply, 14% cent of heat supply and up to 10% cent of transport fuels.

Brown estimated that the renewables programme would generate around 160,000 jobs, and plans for new nuclear power stations around 100,000, with many more created from energy-saving measures.

The prime minister also said that he was prepared to take on public opinion over green taxes, insisting that a low-carbon society would not emerge from a “business as usual” approach.

“It will require real leadership from government - being prepared to make hard decisions on planning or on tax for example,” he said.

“It will mean new kinds of consumer behaviour and lifestyles. And it will demand creativity, innovation and entrepreneurialism throughout our economy and our society.”

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