Can local objectors prevent East Anglian pylons going ahead?

Plans for the line of pylons from Norwich to Bramford and on to Tilbury - and the plans for massive electricity converter stations near the coast - are seen as Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs).

As such the final decision will be made by the relevant secretary of state, in this case the head of the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero on the advice of the national Planning Inspectorate.

Claire Coutinho, secretary of state for energy security and net zero (Image: PA)

District and county councils are consultees and are able to raise objections and reflect the concerns of residents in their areas.

But ultimately they will not have the final say because the projects are seen as being so important for the country as a whole that the whole economic welfare of the UK has to be considered, not just the interests of the areas being directly affected.

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Very effective campaigns are being run by those opposed to pylons and by those concerned about the plans for huge electricity converter stations needed for undersea cables on the coast.

Although supporters of these campaigns share a common goal of preserving the East Anglian coast and countryside, they can be seen as conflicting aims.

If you don't want pylons but want more electricity to go under the sea, you need to build more huge converter stations on the coast to change it from AC to DC and back again.

The North Sea is potentially one of the most productive wind turbine farms in the world - but getting the power generated where it is needed is fraught with problems. (Image: Newsquest)

The decisions on how to transmit the electricity being generated in the North Sea will have to be taken in the next few years to ensure that the infrastructure is in place by the end of the decade when the real need for increased electricity generation becomes clear.

No decisions have yet been made and the official line is that the government has an open mind on all options.

However the nods and winks that have been coming from ministers suggests that they are keen on the most economic and simple solution which would be the line of pylons - but there could be room for more underground cables to avoid problematic areas such as in the vicinity of Wattisham airbase.

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No major decisions are likely to be made before the next general election - and given the current state of politics in this country a close examination of the Labour Party's energy policy is needed.

And it seems that they would be even more keen on a decision to go ahead with the line of pylons to get the power from the North Sea to the midlands and north of England than the current government.

One official said to me: "Do you think Labour would be any more sympathetic to the objections of residents of Tory rural constituencies than the current government when it comes to getting clean, green electricity to communities in their heartland?"

All of this suggests that objectors may have a difficult time in trying to press for a radical change of heart - although they could be more successful in looking for tactical gains.

National Grid has already conceded the principle of putting cables underground in Constable Country - could other short stretches be put below ground in particularly sensitive areas?

Councils are trying to get different parts of the National Grid to come together to create a single converter station for the Lionlink and Sealink cables.

These are the kind of battles that could be won over the next few years - but with politicians accepting that we need new and strengthened power networks in place by the early 2030s the scope for a radical re-think of plans looks unrealistic.