The UK achieved a new clean energy record in the last two weeks of May, as it burned no coal to generate its electricity needs. This achievement marked the longest period that the country needed no coal to meet its power needs since the Industrial Revolution.

A spokesperson from the National Grid confirmed the feat, saying that the final coal generator went offline on the 17th May at 3.12pm - before a two-week period in which it wasn't needed at all.

The polluting fossil fuel wasn't needed for a total of 336 hours, beating the record set just a few weeks earlier of 193 hours.

The first coal-free energy day in Britain was recorded in April 2017. In May, it achieved 679 hours of electricity production without coal for the country, compared to 624 hours for the entire year in 2017.

The CEO of RenewableUK, Emma Pinchbeck, said that although coal had previously powered the Industrial Revolution, the ageing and dirty fuel source was now being edged out by the new powerhouse of the energy economy, wind energy.

She added that renewable power was delivering more than a third of the UK's existing energy and that it had plenty of scope for more.

Green groups are strongly supporting moves to power the British economy with clean and green renewable energy technologies to avoid the mounting risks of climate change and to enjoy the wide benefits of modern energy technologies.

Green power has the potential to create new jobs, build new skilled industries, support British exports and increase energy security of supply. Already the UK has a competitive edge in wind power and emerging wave and tidal technologies.

The last coal-fired power plants will be phased out by the government and be offline by 2025.