Conservative MP says Nicola Sturgeon has abandoned Banff and Buchan workers
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David Duguid MP has said Nicola Sturgeon has abandoned Banff and Buchan workers and deserted Scotland’s oil and gas industry after confirming her opposition to the proposed Cambo field.
The First Minister cemented the SNP’s shift away from long-standing support for the sector, saying: “I don’t think that Cambo should get the green light.”
It comes despite Oil and Gas UK last week warning that skilled jobs – required for a successful energy transition – would be axed unless Holyrood addressed the growing fantasy that demand for oil and gas can end with a “flick of the switch”.
Led by Siccar Point Energy, the Cambo oil field, to the west of Shetland, could yield hundreds of millions of barrels of oil as part of a managed decline of UK source hydrocarbons while we also see a reduced demand through the growth of renewable and low carbon energy.
If approved by the Oil and Gas Authority, drilling could start as early as 2022 - and continue for 25 years.
Oil and gas accounts for three quarters of the UK’s energy needs and it is forecast that by 2050, half of all UK energy demand will still need to be met by oil and gas.
David Duguid MP said: “It’s clear that Nicola Sturgeon has no interest in a so-called ‘Just Transition’ in Banff and Buchan and the wider north-east.
“This is another desperate bid from the SNP to please their separatist coalition Green Party partners.
“Merely playing to extreme green views, this approach does not help deliver the pragmatic transition we need to take towards net-zero
“Previously, the First Minister has attempted to sit on the fence on this issue because she rightly points out that this is not a decision for the Scottish Government.
“The UK Government has agreed a world-leading North Sea Transition Deal with the UK Oil and Gas Industry, which incidentally still includes support for the Acorn CCS and Hydrogen project at St Fergus.
“Only the Scottish Conservatives are willing to stand up for oil and gas workers in Scotland and their crucial role in the transition to net zero.
“These workers don’t want or need to be reskilled but to use the skills they already have to help deliver that transition.”
