Bob the Builder has returned to television for the first time in 15 years, voiced again by Neil Morrissey, to front an advert for energy firm E.On promoting the Government's Net Zero agenda. In the advert, the children's TV character explains that after a trip to Australia he enrolled at a "Net Zero training academy" to learn how to fit solar panels, install home batteries and set up low-carbon heating, ending with his catchphrase "Yes we can!" The campaign has drawn sharp criticism from Reform UK and the Conservatives, who argue it amounts to Net Zero "propaganda" that ignores rising energy bills and job losses in North Sea oil and gas.

Reform UK chairman Lee Matthews accused the advert of turning Bob into a "woke commissar of climate", arguing Britain needs builders, plumbers and electricians rather than "Net Zero specialists". Shadow Energy Secretary Andrew Bowie was similarly dismissive, saying families want cheaper bills rather than cartoon propaganda, and criticised Labour for scaling back North Sea production while pursuing its 2030 clean power target of 95% renewable electricity generation. Meanwhile, viewers online expressed surprise at Bob's British accent, having grown up with the American dub, while E.On said the campaign followed research involving 250 UK energy workers on the shift to green skills.