Anas Sarwar backs oil and gas drilling and calls for 'balanced approach' to North Sea
The Scottish Labour leader has pleaded with his UK government colleagues to be “pursuing the opportunities that exist in oil and gas” in the North Sea despite a manifesto pledge to end new licensing.
Anas Sarwar has signalled his support for opening up the North Sea for more oil and gas drilling - putting him at odds with his UK Labour Energy Secretary Ed Miliband.
The Scottish Labour leader has stated that “pursuing the opportunities that exist in oil and gas” should form part of any economic blueprint for the North Sea. Mr Sarwar has also starkly suggested the Chancellor should rethink her controversial windfall tax as he hinted the current set-up has encouraged companies to “detract from investment” in renewables.
Mr Sarwar was speaking in Glasgow as he warned Scotland was facing a “growth gap” due to a “lack of focus on economic policy” at Holyrood.
Speaking after the publication of a report Scottish Labour commissioned economic expert Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli to draw up to "reignite regional economic growth" in Scotland, Mr Sarwar claimed that “a failure to prioritise economic growth in Scotland has in itself given us a growth gap in the revenue available to spend”.
READ MORE: Renewables and oil and gas chiefs unite to pile pressure on Chancellor amid 'investment headwinds'
He added that it “largely felt like a social policy Parliament rather than an economic policy Parliament”.
The Scottish Labour leader said he was “determined to do government differently if we win that election in six months’ time”.
Mr Sarwar insisted the Scottish Government should be “using the levers we have in Scotland to maximum effect to maximise the opportunities that come from growth”.
He added: “We’ve already seen from statistics that the failure to properly use our levers in Scotland has left us with a £1bn growth gap. That is £1bn of additional revenue we could be spending on those vital common purposes or those economic challenges if we had a similar growth to other parts of the country.”
He confirmed that there was “no circumstance” in which he would introduce university tuition fees if he becomes first minister, stressing no fees was “the settled will” in Scotland.
Mr Sarwar also committed to reforming non-domestic rates in a way that “supports our high streets”.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is under pressure to bring forward her energy profits levy reforms to next year amid widespread fears it will harm investment in North Sea renewables.
Meanwhile, Ms Reeves in understood to be putting pressure on Mr Miliband, the UK Energy Secretary, to relax Labour’s manifesto vow to ban new oil and gas licences to unlock more economic growth opportunities.
Mr Sarwar has signalled his support for more oil and gas drilling in the North Sea and has appeared to support calls for a rethink of the energy profits levy strategy in order to boost renewables investment as he called for a more “balanced approach”.
He said: “That balanced approach means we should sustainably look at the opportunities that come from oil and gas, making sure, crucially, that we have them as investable propositions.
“Part of the challenge we have right now is there are fully licensed oil and gas developments that aren’t being fully explored because some of the arrangements currently detract from investment. We have to take a look at that.
“We recognise that the large-scale investment that’s required for our renewables future is going to come from those companies currently working in the oil and gas sector. Making sure they have the ability to make those investments is really really important.”
Mr Sarwar added: “It has to be pursuing the opportunities that exist in oil and gas because it’s going to play an important role for decades to come.
“And it’s going to be maximising the investment opportunities that come from renewables.”
The Scottish Labour leader’s comments came as it emerged the Scottish Greens are to force a vote at Holyrood over whether the controversial Rosebank development should be given the green light.
First Minister John Swinney failed to clearly state his position on the oil field last week, saying only that any development should pass a "climate compatibility" test.
Pressed by Scottish Green co-leader Ross Greer , Mr Swinney said that developments such as Rosebank - the UK's largest undeveloped oil field - would have to be "compatible with our journey to net zero".
However, he also stressed there would continue to be a need for oil and gas over the coming years, while the country transitions away from fossil fuels.
While Wednesday's vote at Holyrood will be symbolic, it marks a chance for MSPs to make their views known ahead of the UK Government making its decision.
Speaking ahead of Wednesday's debate, Scottish Green climate spokesperson Patrick Harvie said allowing Rosebank to proceed would be "catastrophic for our climate and our future".
Former first ministers Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf both made their opposition to the development clear.
But with Mr Swinney now in charge of the SNP, Mr Harvie claimed the governing party has "hidden behind the idea of a so-called climate compatibility test".
His comments come after Equinor, the Norwegian energy firm which owns the majority of the Rosebank development, recently resubmitted plans for its approval.
The field, which is about 80 miles north west of Shetland , is said to contain up to 300 million barrels of oil and some gas.
Development of the field was originally approved in 2023, but the Supreme Court later ruled that the emissions created from burning fossil fuels should be considered when granting permission for new drilling sites.
Equinor, which says it is "fully committed" to working with all relevant bodies to "advance the Rosebank project", last month submitted a new application.
Speaking last week, Mr Swinney insisted: "The approach that the Scottish Government has taken consistently through the work of my term, the term of Humza Yousaf and also Nicola Sturgeon , was to insist upon the importance of a climate compatibility assessment about any development that comes forward."
He stressed that meant that "any developments of oil and gas licensing have to be compatible with our journey to net zero".
Mr Swinney continued: "There will be, for some time, a requirement to utilise fossil fuels as we transition from our current situation to net zero.
"The question that has to be addressed given the requirements of society in that respect is, can any of that activity be compatible with our journey to net zero and that's the policy position of the Scottish Government."
A UK government spokesperson said: “We are not willing to accept the status quo we inherited of the North Sea being in decline.
“This is why we have taken rapid steps to deliver the next generation of good jobs for North Sea workers in a fair and orderly transition, including by making the biggest investment yet in offshore wind and carbon capture.
“Our landmark clean energy jobs plan will deliver the next generation of skilled jobs across the country, where Scotland could see over 40,000 new jobs by 2030."
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