A former Miss America winner turned nuclear energy expert has issued a stark warning to Ed Miliband over net zero.
Grace Vanderhei, née Stanke, who won the national contest in 2023, has spent her post-pageant career raising awareness about zero-carbon energy sources with the Wall Street Journal declaring her “the new face of nuclear energy.”
Not only has Mrs Vanderhei promoted nuclear policy, she has been a passionate supporter of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths) education across the United States.
Now, she has told GB News there needs to be more work between the US and the UK governments to promote nuclear energy, with her encouraging Labour to take opportunities proposed by Donald Trump.
When asked what Labour should be doing, Mrs Vanderhei told GB News: “Building more nuclear is obviously opinion.
“I know Hinckley is underway, but with only 15 per cent of Great Britain’s energy coming from nuclear energy, I think there could be a lot more to gain from it.”
In America, she stressed how nuclear energy has become a rare bipartisan issue and hoped she could see the same in the UK.
However, President Trump has repeatedly criticised Keir Starmer’s focus on net zero, dubbing offshore wind farms as an “expensive joke” and saying Britain should follow his lead and “drill, baby, drill.”
Energy policy has become a sticking point between the US and UK
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Back in November, Sir Keir announced the UK’s first small modular reactor (SMR) nuclear power station would be built at Wylfa in North Wales by publicly owned Great British Energy-Nuclear.
Backed by a £2.5billion investment from the Government, Downing Street and Mr Miliband were forced to defend the nuclear plant plans after criticism from US ambassador to the UK Warren Stephens, who said Washington was “extremely disappointed” by the decision.
Mr Miliband said he made “no apologies” for the UK’s decision to choose Britain’s Rolls-Royce to design the reactor, after demands from Donald Trump’s administration for a US manufacturer to be chosen.
A Downing Street spokesman said the project “doesn’t close the door to a larger plant elsewhere” with US involvement.
Grace Stanke, pictured here in 2023, has become a passionate campaigner for STEM education
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However, despite this setback, Mrs Vanderhei was quick to downplay concerns about potential friction between the White House and Downing Street.
She told GB News: “I think ultimately, there may be, but I think that this is where we can come back to that bipartisanship.
“I think we were able to really see some good opportunities to bridge different opinions and have conversations about maybe changing opinions, changing mindsets.
“Having a ‘forward first’ mindset of building innovation and building a better future is beneficial for both countries in addition to our people in general.”
Energy, Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband announced the policy in November
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Mrs Vanderhei did have an explanation for President Trump relentless attacks on net zero, stressing the President was using his “unique” communication style to get his message across.
She told GB News, that in a lot of different ways, his criticism of net zero is his way of getting his message across.
She said: “I’m not a member of the administration, I’m not one that knows exactly what’s being said behind closed doors.
“But in this capacity, he’s using this to get the message across of how can we get reliable energy and build innovation, across the entire world, ultimately, and have that with collaboration between the United States and the UK.”
While Mrs Vanderhei said President Trump used “different verbiage” to speak about energy policy, she said: “I think at this point we all know what to expect with Trump when he talks about his deals a lot of the time.”
Hinkley Point C is a key part of the policy
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The Government has tasked Great British Energy-Nuclear (GBE-N) with identifying potential sites for a new large-scale nuclear power station, similar to Hinkley Point C and Sizewell, with findings due by autumn 2026. Sites across the UK, including Scotland, will be considered.
This comes as part of a wider UK–US nuclear partnership agreed in September, potentially worth £76billion.
Alongside large plants, the Government is backing small modular reactors (SMRs), factory-built mini nuclear stations designed to be faster and cheaper to deploy.
The first SMRs are expected to generate enough electricity to power around three million homes.
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero says the plans could revive sites like Wylfa, previously stalled, and usher in a new “nuclear golden age.”