Meeting of the Parliament 06 March 2024 [Draft]
I am afraid that I do not have a great deal of time.
Through our plan, we have set out a responsible and balanced set of proposals for an approach to future licensing. We are currently finalising that strategy, and I hope that the UK Government will pay attention.
As part of that work, we have consulted on a presumption against licensing for entirely new oil and gas exploration activity. To be clear—and to return to my point about the importance of evidence-led policy development—we have never proposed no further North Sea licensing at all. That would be wrong: it could destroy the very skills and investment that we urgently need in order to transition to a low-carbon economy. Instead, our draft strategy consults on fields that are already identified but not yet in production being subject to a robust climate compatibility checkpoint.
The proposals in our strategy represent a focus on meeting Scotland’s energy security needs, reducing emissions and ensuring a just transition for our oil and gas workforce. To be clear on the first of those, the North Sea will continue to provide Scotland with an important level of energy security over the coming years.
A key aspect of that—which is paramount in Scottish ministers’ considerations—is the issue of skills. We need to harness our skills, talent and experience to support the build-out of low-carbon technologies in Scotland. The infrastructure of the North Sea and the associated skills and expertise are and will be a huge asset in helping us to achieve net zero and to become a world leader in renewables in areas such as offshore wind, hydrogen and carbon capture, use and storage, or CCUS.