There would be no new oil and gas investment in the UK under a Labour Government.

That’s the suggestion from Britain’s opposition leader Keir Starmer, who spoke during a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos, and said his party wants to get to a new role for oil and gas in the energy transition.

Mr Starmer did not provide further details but when asked if this applied to the North Sea, he said “yes”.

His views follow the UK’s latest licensing round for oil and gas which attracted 115 applications from interested businesses.

Keir Starmer said: “One of the things that I am proposing is a clean power alliance where countries that are in the advance when it comes to net zero share information, cooperate share investment with a view to driving the global prices down.

“So this is an inverse OPEC if you like. Instead of trying to ensure prices stay at a certain level, it’s to drive them down to see the common benefit whether it is in the UK or across the globe. And if we could get that alliance working together then I think that will be a big step in the right direction.”

In response to Sir Keir Starmer’s commitment to no investment in new North Sea oil and gas projects, Ami McCarthy, a Political Campaigner for Greenpeace UK, said: “Over the last year, as both the climate impacts and the profiteering of the gas giants have become unignorable, public support for climate action has risen.

“The most important climate action any country can take is to leave oil and gas behind by boosting home insulation and transitioning to renewables as quickly as possible.

“Labour’s latest announcement shows they understand this. Going into the next election, it’s becoming increasingly clear that if any party wants to get ahead, now is the time to set out their vision for delivering the green economy of the future that the UK desperately needs.”

A BEIS spokesperson told ELN: “Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine means it is now more important than ever that we make the most of sovereign energy resources, strengthening our energy security now and into the future.

“While we are driving down demand for fossil fuels, there will continue to be ongoing demand for oil and gas over the coming years as we transition to lower carbon, more secure forms of energy generated in this country.”

Article source: https://www.energylivenews.com/2023/01/20/no-investment-in-new-oil-and-gas-under-labour-government-says-starmer/