Just days before Andy Burnham is expected to become Britain’s next prime minister, the North Sea oil industry has launched a last-ditch attempt to win his approval for new drilling. Industry lobbyists have written to more than 400 Labour MPs, appealing to Burnham’s reindustrialisation agenda and calling on the incoming government to allow more oil and gas extraction in UK waters.
The letter, from the trade body Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) and co-signed by more than 10 business groups and the GMB union, argues that the transition to a lower-carbon energy system should be “built on an all-energy approach: one that builds on our industrial strengths rather than overlooks them”. It urges the government to show “a commitment to UK manufacturing, industrial capability and the skilled workforce that has powered the nation for generations”.
“North Sea oil industry urges incoming PM Burnham to approve new drilling as Reeves warns successor.”
Burnham has promised to tackle deindustrialisation and safeguard sovereign manufacturing in critical sectors including energy. But the fate of two major North Sea projects, Rosebank and Jackdaw, has remained in limbo under energy secretary Ed Miliband, who previously described them as “climate vandalism”. Both were licensed under the previous government, meaning approving them would not breach Labour’s manifesto pledge to ban new exploration licences.
According to the Observer, Miliband is now reportedly willing to consent to the Jackdaw gas development, in what would be seen as an effort to prove he could be a credible successor to Rachel Reeves as chancellor. Reeves, meanwhile, is battling to defend her record after two years in office and is expected to issue a stern warning to her successor in what is widely seen as her final act before Burnham takes over.
It is not yet clear what a Burnham premiership would mean for the North Sea, but the industry’s appeal – and the reported shift on Jackdaw – suggest the debate over the UK’s energy future is far from settled.