Sturgeon asks PM to reassess oil and gas licencing plans
The First Minister wants to reconsider developments where work has not yet commenced - like the Cambo Field off Shetland.
Last updated 12th Aug 2021
Nicola Sturgeon has written to Boris Johnson calling on the UK Government to reconsider it's oil and gas licencing plans.
The First Minister wants to look at developments that have yet to start work, such as the controversial Cambo Field off Shetland.
It comes after the release of the scientific report published by the IPCC this week and the severity of the climate emergency.
The First Minister has also proposed a UK four nations summit to ensure that global leadership on the challenging decisions that need to be made to ensure a just transition to net zero is demonstrated in the run-up to COP26 and beyond.
In the letter the FM says:
"Climate change is an inherently global issue and can only be addressed through co-ordinated international effort and working with others.
"Cop-26 therefore represents the world's best chance - perhaps our last chance - to avert the worst impacts of climate change."
Responding to the letter, Scottish Greens climate spokesperson Mark Ruskell said:
“It is welcome to see the Scottish Government start to come off the fence when it comes to the cambo oil field, but it is clear there is still far too many hopes pinned on the oil and gas industry to get us out of the climate emergency.
"The IPCC report is very clear that we cannot wait for the development of new technologies, we must listen to the UN Secretary General and stop fossil fuel expansion entirely. That means revoking Cambo and no new oil and gas licenses whatsoever, with a just transition ensuring no worker is left behind.”
Sam Chetan-Welsh, political campaigner for Greenpeace UK, said: “Nicola Sturgeon is deferring to Boris Johnson to check the climate impact of Cambo, but until she makes her own stance clear this is just a PR exercise.
“The experts couldn’t be clearer- humanity is at ‘code red’, and the last thing we can afford is a new oilfield which would pump out the equivalent emissions of 18 coal-fired power stations running for a year.
“The First Minister must stop hiding behind Boris Johnson. If she wants to show leadership on climate she must clearly say: stop Cambo.”
GMB General Secretary Gary Smith said:
“Our political class still fail to recognise the realities of gas, where our nations are increasingly dependent on imports to supply the four-fifths of households that rely on it for heating – there is little honesty here for consumers or the hundreds of thousands of jobs dependent on the sector.
“Rather than political posturing, our leaders need to take responsibility and properly collaborate on a credible energy and industrial strategy, ensuring affordable and secure supply, while stopping the mass export of the green jobs we need to support the delivery of our net zero targets.”