Andy Burnham has come under fire for the ‘ludicrous’ decision to block new North Sea drilling while going to court to defend the right to develop an oilfield in the Falklands.
asserted
Burnham → come → Falklands
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch yesterday raised fears that the giant Rosebank scheme is in danger of not going ahead and condemned the new legislation which includes a ban on new licences.
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which → raise → licences
The Treasury’s Budget forecaster also told MSPs that declining production is a ‘significant’ factor in its projection that oil and gas revenues will slump to ‘close to zero’ within five years and reiterated that failure to approve Rosebank would significantly reduce estimated tax revenues in the coming years.
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failure → tell → years
Ellie Reeves, the attorney general for England and Wales, has been representing the UK Government at an international tribunal for the law of the sea (Itlos) opposing Argentina seeking a provisional ruling suspending drilling for oil at a field near the Falkland Islands.
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Argentina → represent → Islands
At Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, Mrs Badenoch said: ‘Today, the Government is in court defending our right to drill oil and gas off the Falklands.
‘
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Government → say → Falklands
At the same time, this Government is passing legislation to ban drilling off Scotland.
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Government → pass → Scotland
Why is it acceptable to drill oil and gas in the Falklands but not in the North Sea?’
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it → drill → Sea
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch questioned Andy Burnham over legislation which includes a ban on new drilling licences at Prime Minister's Questions
The Government recently gave the go-ahead to the Jackdaw gas development off Aberdeen
The Labour government’s Energy Independence Bill will bring a statutory end to any new North Sea licences.
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Bill → question → licences
It recently gave the go-ahead to the Jackdaw gas development off Aberdeen but is still considering the Rosebank oil development off Shetland.
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It → give → Shetland
During their exchanges, Mrs Badenoch highlighted that the tax revenue from the Rosebank development is already written into the Budget tax forecasts even though it has not yet been approved.
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it → highlight → forecasts
She said: ‘If it’s not going to be approved, why was it in the Budget?’
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it → say → Budget
Mr Burnham said it is a quasi-legal decision which ‘will be taken in due course’.
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which → say → course
Mrs Badenoch responded: ‘I asked him about Rosebank, he says it is a quasi-judicial decision.
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it → respond → Rosebank
It is a political decision, why else did it take the Labour Government two years to approve Jackdaw while the Foreign Secretary (Ed Miliband) was in charge, and now he’s gone it happened just like that.
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it → take → that
‘That’s the real reason they didn’t do it, the Foreign Secretary instructed Government lawyers not to fight the court case.
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Secretary → ’ → case
He called Rosebank “climate vandalism”, but then he also thought that cosying up to Russell Brand would make him Prime Minister, so I don’t think we need to trust his judgement.
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we → call → judgement
‘Meanwhile, the Chancellor is already banking the tax revenue from Rosebank in his calculations.
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Chancellor → bank → calculations
So why won’t he just approve Rosebank?’
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he → approve → Rosebank
Mr Burnham said: ‘Correct me if I’m wrong but the Jackdaw decision that the last Government was trying to take was struck down because they made it an overtly political decision, that was why they couldn’t take that decision.’
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they → say → decision
He added: ‘We will take a further decision on Rosebank in due course.’
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We → add → course
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which provides the Treasury with its tax forecasts, expects that revenue from oil and gas will fall from £5.1billion this year to £3.1billion next year, £1.9billion in 2028-29, £1.2billion in 2029-30 and £0.3billion in 2030-31.
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revenue → provide → 2030
It says that this will fall to ‘close to zero’ in the following year, ‘primarily due to the expiry of the EPL in September 2029 and the expected continued fall in oil and gas production’.
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this → say → production
In the Scottish Parliament, Tom Josephs, a member of the Budget Responsibility Committee at the OBR, confirmed that Jackdaw and Rosebank revenue had both been assumed.
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revenue → confirm → OBR
He said this was based on projections by the North Sea Transition Authority but added: ‘I should stress that is a forecasting assumption, it is completely separate from the Government’s actual decision on whether to go ahead with Rosebank.’
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it → say → Rosebank
He said production would decline by 14 per cent per year rather than 10 per cent if no new fields at all were developed.
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fields → say → year
Pressed by Tory MSP Liam Kerr to explain how much of the projected decline in the next five years is down to declining production and how much it is down to changes in oil and gas prices and the end of the energy profits levy, Mr Josephs said it is ‘a combination of all of those things’.
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it → press → things
He said the assumption that the energy profits levy ends in 2030 will lead to a significant decline in revenue, but added: ‘But in addition the lower prices and production make quite a significant difference as well.’
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prices → say → difference
The Aporia
