The SNP Government’s “net zero” energy chief has given a strong signal the party is preparing to soften its stance on a proposed ban on new oil and gas exploration.
Mairi McAllan was in Aberdeen on Monday where she announced climate funding and toured Aberdeen South harbour.
Asked if the draft ban on new oil and gas exploration would stay, she quickly pointed out there is officially still no presumption against that policy.
And she said Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer’s proposals – which would ban new oil and gas exploration – are “too extreme”.
Ms McAllan told the P&J the SNP government will be more “nuanced” in its approach.
“Just to be absolutely clear, we don’t have a presumption against exploration,” she said.
“That was something we consulted on and it’s going to form part of the energy strategy which will be released prior to the summer.
“That hasn’t actually been confirmed yet.”
What is ‘presumption against’?
The Scottish Government’s draft energy strategy, published in January last year, set out the party’s position that their should be a presumption against new oil and gas licences.
It means new exploration would be opposed unless companies could prove that doing so would not negatively affect efforts to limit global warming.
While licensing new developments in the sector is reserved to Westminster, the SNP’s stance would be symbolically significant.
New First Minister John Swinney has so far failed to say whether he will maintain the draft presumption against new exploration, prompting concerns among climate campaigners.
Labour’s current policy on net zero for the North Sea is to ban all new licences for new exploration and renewal of current projects.
Trade union Unite launched a campaign on Friday to push the party to drop its planned ban on new licences until a “genuine programme” to safeguard jobs comes forward.
Ms McAllan said: “I do recognise what Unite the union are saying in respect to Labour’s proposals which to me were inconsiderate of the fact so many of our communities are built around this industry and we need the funding of that industry to fund the transition that we all accept we need to make.
“It was too extreme in that side and I think the government will try and find a more nuanced position to support.”
Scottish Labour net zero spokesperson Sarah Boyack accused the SNP of “yet another screeching U-turn”.
She added: “From opposing the windfall tax to tearing up their climate targets, the SNP has given up on climate leadership and abandoned Scots struggling with soaring bills.”
‘We can’t just pull rug from under workforce’s feet’
Ms McAllan was in Aberdeen to announce £5.5 million of government funding to support Scotland’s network of 20 Community Climate Action Hubs.
She visited the Earth and Worms community garden in Tillydrone, which has benefited from funding awarded to the North East Scotland Climate Action Network Hub.
Ms McAllan’s visit came as a new report warned on Tuesday that in a worst case scenario for the future of the UK offshore energy industry, about 31,000 Scottish jobs are at risk, with the north-east suffering the biggest impact.
According to Paul de Leeuw, director of the Energy Transition Institute at Robert Gordon University (RGU), in Aberdeen, the Scottish-based offshore energy workforce could plunge by around 40%, from 79,000 to about 48,000 workers, between now and 2030.
Asked about the report’s findings, Ms McAllan said: “We need to confirm that oil and gas has been a big part of our economy and society.
“We know we have to transition but we need to support that. We can’t just pull the rug from under the feet of a workforce who are world renowned for their expertise.
“It’s a responsible government – a government I’m part of – that will make sure we do that in a fair and managed way, maximise the opportunities of the future, minimise the gaps and protect as many jobs as possible.”
Scottish Conservative energy spokesman Douglas Lumsden said: “Successive first ministers have demonised the industry and the people who work in it.
“Mairi McAllan was very happy to sing from the same hymn sheet as Ms Sturgeon and Mr Yousaf.
“That approach was set to throw 100,000 jobs on the scrap heap overnight.”
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