Ed Miliband has called on the public sector to take the lead on renewable energy and do more to push forward the development of new technology.

In a speech to the Environment Agency, the secretary of state for energy and climate change urged public sector leaders to "be brave and see the opportunities".

He also called on them to use more of the land they own for the development of renewables, insisting this would increase Britain's capacity to generate renewable energy.

"For low-carbon energy, we will have to use all the technologies at our disposal, from renewables to nuclear to carbon capture and storage - picking up the pace cannot be left to the energy companies alone," Mr Miliband remarked.

He said the public sector owns around 10% of the UK's land and generates approximately one percent of its renewable energy.

The government announced recently that it would extend its renewables obligation - which requires suppliers to source a certain proportion of their energy from renewable sources - from 2027 until 2037.