North Sea 'Mismanagement' Slammed

Energy minister Fergus Ewing will today accuse his UK counterpart of mismanagement'' of North Sea oil and demand urgent reform.

Fergus Ewing is expected to meet UK energy minister Matt Hancock at a meeting of Pilot, an oil and gas taskforce which brings together government and industry representatives, in London.

Speaking ahead of the meeting, Mr Ewing said: The oil and gas industry is a strong success story for Scotland and will continue to be.

However, because of the mismanagement of oil and gas fiscal policy by the UK Government, challenges remain and we must tackle the ongoing cost pressures and the fall in oil prices head on.

Last week the Scottish Government published a new report setting out a range of taxation changes and we will now consult closely with industry on these proposals.

Today I will re-iterate our call for urgent reform to the UK energy minister and set out the detail of our plans to industry leaders.

We are continuing to challenge the UK Government to maintain the momentum for fiscal and regulatory change in the oil and gas sector, both of which also were recognised by Sir Ian Wood as critical to prolonging the life of the industry beyond 2050 and maximising the total value generated in the economy.

I am confident that our proposed fiscal changes will not only boost the economy but analysis based on industry data shows that they will support thousands of jobs.

Last year the UK Government announced a 2% reduction of the supplementary charge rate - this reduction doesn't go far enough.

We are calling on the UK Government to provide a clear timetable to fully reverse the increase brought in in 2011.

That will provide a strong signal for investors that the North Sea is open for business.

After years of using the North Sea as a cash cow the UK Government must finally and urgently take substantive action.

We believe there is a long-term sustainable future for the North Sea and we are committed to using every lever at our disposal. It is time for the UK Government to follow suit.''