Labour is to ban new oil and gas fields in Britain, making it far harder for any future government to reopen the North Sea. [some emphasis, links added]
A legal prohibition on new drilling will be included in the energy independence bill, part of the raft of new legislation set out by the King in his speech opening Parliament on Wednesday.
The bill will make Ed Miliband’s temporary moratorium on new drilling permanent, ensuring it would be far harder for a future government to reverse the ban. Labour also plans to legally ban onshore fracking.
A detailed note released by the energy secretary’s officials after the King’s Speech said the bill would “meet [Labour’s] manifesto commitment not to issue new licences to explore new fields, including delivering the commitment to ban fracking”.
However, the timing is controversial because the Iran war has choked off supplies of fuel from the Middle East and created a global oil crisis.
Leading executives, including the bosses of British Gas and Octopus Energy, have urged Mr Miliband to rethink his North Sea policy as a result.
The Energy Secretary’s plan won praise from environmental campaigners but generated a backlash from his political rivals, the offshore industry, and Sir Tony Blair’s think tank.
Claire Coutinho, the shadow energy secretary, said the policy would “amount to the wilful destruction of our own domestic energy supplies and people’s livelihoods”.
She added, “It is utterly shameful, and we Conservatives will fight them every step of the way.”
Richard Tice, Reform’s energy spokesman, called the plan “ludicrous”.
The fate of the energy independence bill is uncertain, given that Sir Keir Starmer is fighting to save his premiership.
However, Mr Miliband is expected to be among the challengers seeking to replace him in any Labour leadership contest. If successful, Mr Miliband is very likely to push ahead with the legislation.
Under the plans, existing licensed oil and gas fields will be allowed to keep going till depleted.
However, the fate of the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields – two significant North Sea oil and gas projects that the Energy Secretary has yet to approve – remains uncertain.
Read rest at The Telegraph
