A BUSINESS that showed Jeremy Corbyn its work painting giant blades for wind turbines says it has doubled the capacity of its Hampshire site.

MHI Vestas, which employs around 50 people at the former Fawley power station plant, welcomed the Labour leader on the day he announced plans for 37 new wind farms.

The company brings wind turbine blades to Fawley by barge from its manufacturing site on the Isle of Wight, where it employs more than 700 people.

At 800 metres (262ft) long, the blades are the length of 11 double decker buses.

They are painted to resist the offshore weather before being taken away and shipped from Portsmouth.

Mary Thorogood, senior specialist for MHI Vestas, said: “We doubled the capacity last year to deal with the demand both from the UK and Europe.”

The Danish manufacturer came to Fawley because of the ready supply of skills in the composites industry, she said.

“When we were recruiting to double capacity, we had well over 1,000 applicants queuing around the block,” she added.

After touring the site next to the part-demolished power station, the opposition leader said the MHI Vestas operation was “very impressive indeed”.

“I’ve been talking to the directors here about the systems they use, the very high quality of the work they do but also the jobs that have been created, some 750, and the training that’s needed for those jobs,” Mr Corbyn said.

Mr Corbyn’s visit coincided with his announcement of a 10-year plan for a “green industrial revolution” under Labour, which he said would create 67,000 jobs.

Fifty-one per cent of the funding for new offshore wind farms would come from government and 20 per cent of the proceeds would be used to regenerate coastal towns, he said.

Mr Corbyn said: “We have to do everything we can to reduce emissions in order to protect our natural world and our environment.”

He added: “The costs of wind turbines are coming down. They are the future. We need to increase the amount of wind generation.”

The money directed to coastal communities – estimated at between £600million and £1billion per year – would be spent on projects decided by the communities.

Mr Corbyn said: “Holiday patterns have completely changed - they need income, they need refurbishment, they need regeneration and they need jobs.

“The local community will decide how it’s spent. A library, a park, a youth centre, a nursery.

“People in small towns usually know what’s best for them.”

However, the Conservatives have criticised Labour’s plans and said they would risk jobs.

Energy minister Kwasi Kwarteng said: “Even Labour’s own supporters have described their plan as ‘utterly unachievable’, showing how Corbyn would risk jobs across the country.

“Why would any investor put money into a nationalised wind farm?”