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Robert Palmer

@robertnpalmer.bsky.social
1.5K followers 555 following 95 posts

Deputy Director, Uplift. Campaigning for a rapid & fair transition away from oil & gas production in the UK. Ex-Tax Justice UK & Global Witness. He/him 🏳️‍🌈. All views are my own.

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Reposted by Robert Palmer
Kevin Anderson @kevinclimate.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Emit today & fix it tomorrow. Proposal by Loo/Allen/etc for new N.Sea oil & gas developments to be conditional on fossil-fuel execs promising to neutralise emissions thro' future CCS & “engineered removals”. static1.squarespace.com/static/6356a... My response: climateuncensored.com/response-to-...
climateuncensored.com
Response to Open Letter to DESNZ about Rosebank & Jackdaw - Climate Uncensored
Response to a letter from Stephanie Loo, Myles Allen & colleagues to the DESNZ Secretary of State about offsetting continued fossil fuel production with
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Simon Evans @drsimevans.carbonbrief.org · 03/08/2026
🧵Right-leaning newspapers are trying to blame Europe's raging wildfires on everything EXCEPT fossil fuels 1. The Wall Street Journal Frontpage story: "Greece fights wildfires as Europe crisis spreads" WSJ editorial: "How green policies fuel fires in Europe"
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Laurie Macfarlane @lmacfarlane.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
🚨 NEW: @danneidle.bsky.social claims Scotland’s 48% tax rate has lost public revenue. But is this actually true? My new deep-dive says no – Dan’s analysis doesn’t prove anything. It’s a long read, so buckle up 🧵
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LBC @lbc.co.uk · 19/07/2026
'The argument this is the future of our energy is a complete distraction.' @robertnpalmer.bsky.social explains what new drilling in the North Sea could mean for Brits.
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Guy Shrubsole @guyshrubsole.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Jackdaw gasfield would create only 27 direct full-time jobs, documents show Also, nice work by Fossil Free London on their banner: “Fossil Fuels? Andy, don’t Burn’em” www.theguardian.com/business/202...
theguardian.com
Jackdaw gasfield would create only 27 direct full-time jobs, documents show
Campaigners say field will bring minimal benefit for UK economy, as industry lobbies Burnham for go-ahead
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Caroline Lucas @carolinelucas.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Hard to think of a more deeply damaging start to Burnham’s premiership than giving green light to new oil & gas in N. Sea, if true. It won’t lower bills or lead to greater energy security but will drive an even hotter planet. What a terrible signal to give to rest of the world #ClimateVandalism
x.com
BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) on X
Andy Burnham will announce plans for new oil and gas drilling in the North Sea when he becomes prime minister on Monday, the BBC has been told. The announcement will form part of a flurry of policy m...
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Luke Tryl @luketryl.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
As we come to the end of the latest burst of warm weather what do Britons think about heatwaves? Asked at the end of the June heatwaves and climate, people's unsurprising top reaction was 'Hot' but that was followed by unbeatable, uncomfortable, worried, concerned and exhausted
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Steve Akehurst @steveakehurst.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Weird thing is most testing will show you that one of the most vote losing positions Labour could adopt is explicit anti-Net Zero signalling. This is because climate still disproportionately matters to Lab/Green voters while Lab/Reform voters don’t care either way...
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
More North Sea drilling will do nothing for affordability of energy or materially help security of supply. Great piece at @rusi.bsky.social www.rusi.org/explore-our-...
rusi.org
The North Sea Debate Risks Missing the Point
Claims new drilling in the North Sea could materially reshape the UK’s energy security appear overstated, misbalancing the discussion on future developments.
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Investment in the energy transition means more jobs, lower bills and a safer climate. It's the only sensible thing to do. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Progressive economists reject Unite leader’s criticism of Ed Miliband
Sharon Graham is urged to withdraw her claim that the energy secretary would cost jobs if he became chancellor
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Guy Shrubsole @guyshrubsole.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
UK records its hottest June day on record. The climate crisis is here, now. Shame on any politician, corporate CEO, or union boss who still lobbies against urgent climate action. You're condemning us all to heatwave hell, health issues and avoidable deaths. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
UK records its hottest June day, beating highs from 1957 and 1976
Temperature of 35.7C recorded in Surrey, beating previous record of 35.6C, while France records hottest day nationally
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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
For the best part of a decade the UK had a policy of maximising oil and gas production from the North Sea and throughout that time the economy continued its miserable run of form. www.thetimes.com/article/cc56...
thetimes.com
Keir Starmer under pressure from ministers to rethink North Sea drilling
Sir Tony Blair’s claim that Labour should rip up Ed Miliband’s green targets has found favour with some members of the cabinet
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Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
The more we experience fossil fuel volatility, the clearer the case becomes: "The war has certainly accelerated clean tech adoption." This is what I told The Times for their piece on how the energy crisis drives adoption of solar, EVs and heat pumps. www.thetimes.com/uk/environme...
thetimes.com
Britons embrace green technology to dodge rising fuel costs
Households are increasingly turning to heat pumps, EVs and solar panels to avoid big rises in the price of fossil fuels triggered by the Iran war
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Zoe Avison @zoeavison.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
get in, we're delinking ember-energy.org/latest-insig...
ember-energy.org
British power prices are increasingly independent from gas | Ember
An increasing proportion of clean power is already priced independently from fossil fuels in Britain, and a de-linking is beginning to emerge.
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
The war in the Gulf is driving prices up - petrol, food & energy bills. There are steep costs for countries dependent on importing oil & gas. This is speeding up a switch to clean energy - solar, heat pumps, electric vehicles. Me on @aljazeera.com
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
UK dependence on oil & gas is making all of us poorer except the shareholders and bosses of companies like BP Me on @lbc.co.uk 1/
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Costa Samaras @costasamaras.com · 28/04/2026
Hold on. We the taxpayers are going to pay companies $900 million, which is more than 6x what we spend on wind power R&D, to NOT build wind power at a time when electricity prices are spiking and we need more clean power?
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
From Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency on new UK oil and gas: “It is up to the government, but these fields would not change much for the UK’s energy security, nor would they change the price of oil and gas. They would not make any significant difference to this crisis.”
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End Fuel Poverty Coalition @endfuelpoverty.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
🌍This is our home. Yet millions of people around the world are trapped in energy poverty, paying the price for a broken global energy system. Clean energy can help cut bills, reduce poverty and protect our planet. 🗣️It’s time for leaders to #SeeTheBigPicture this Earth Day.
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Isabella M. Weber @isabellamweber.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
It will be the law of the jungle. Market analysts are already predicting that rich countries will outbid poor countries for scarce oil and gas supplies. This means energy famine for the Global South. Link: www.ft.com/content/6ca1...
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Steve Akehurst @steveakehurst.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
NEW: Where are voters landing on the North Sea oil debate post-Iran? A quick thread on some of the fluidities and ambiguities, which I think can tell you something about polling/public opinion itself. Includes some new polling and message testing via @yougov.co.uk for @persuasionuk.bsky.social 🧵
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Doug Parr @dougparr.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
As Ed Miliband seeks to 'double down' on the UK energy transition to clean power, this is a reminder of why that matters to consumers: The highest proportion of fossil fuels in the energy mix leads to the highest prices according to Fidelity international www.ft.com/content/6b4e...
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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
Nick Robinson on the Today programme this morning was quick to repeat a misleading line about why we should support new North Sea oil & gas extraction in the UK on the grounds that it's MUCH (4x) cleaner than importing LNG. It's incorrect on several grounds: 🧵
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Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
It's perfectly reasonable to challenge ministers on N Sea oil & gas as a response to the energy shock. But this is the exclusive framing for EVERY interview on this topic. No minister or opposition leader is ever asked if they'll "max out" wind/solar. It's always framed as fossil fuels v inaction
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Doug Parr @dougparr.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
As Trump prepares to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, it’s worth knowing a staggering stat about the gas that comes through there: If all LNG coming down the Strait in 2025 had been used for electricity, it would have been less that what was generated by solar power newly INSTALLED that year 🧵🧵 1/5
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Andrew Sparrow @andrewsparrowgdn.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
Starmer says he’s ‘fed up’ with energy bills going up for Britons because of actions taken by Trump and Putin - www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
theguardian.com
Starmer says he’s ‘fed up’ with Trump and Putin’s actions pushing up energy bills for Britons – UK politics live
Prime minister explicitly blames US president for British consumers’ higher bills as he concludes tour of Gulf states
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Doug Parr @dougparr.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
The political 'choice' over North Sea oil & gas drilling in a nutshell "There is no world in which Labour can get a little closer to Reform, allay fears of concerned voters by indulging a nostalgic fantasy that cannot keep the lights on" www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Ed Miliband hold firm! North sea oil and gas drilling won’t help anyone other than Nigel Farage | Zoe Williams
It’s worrying to watch Labour entertain Reform’s fantasies about fossil fuels. Only renewables will bring lower bills and higher energy security, says Guardian columnist Zoe Williams
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Doug Parr @dougparr.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
Opening new oil &gas fields in North Sea would encourage developing countries to exploit more fossil fuels One senior African negotiator reacted furiously to the suggestion: “new oil exploration by a historic emitter is as contradictory as it is regressive” www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
UK opening new oil and gas fields would imperil global climate goals, experts say
Climate diplomacy figures warn North Sea drilling would encourage fossil fuel exploitation by developing countries
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Doug Parr @dougparr.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
ICYMI Climate Scientists write urging UK govt - & opposition parties - to prioritise renewable energy as more cost-effective response to energy crisis than North Sea drilling "around 90% of North Sea oil & gas has already been extracted... more is unlikely to move prices" www.ft.com/content/5059...
ft.com
Leading UK climate scientists warn against new North Sea drilling
Intervention comes as political pressure rises for British government response to energy crisis caused by Iran war
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Simon Evans @drsimevans.carbonbrief.org · 02/04/2026
NEW ANALYSIS: Record wind and solar generation saved UK from gas imports worth £1bn in March 2026 📈Wind+solar were up 22% year-on-year in March to a record high for the month ⛴️This avoided the need for gas imports worth £1bn at current high prices www.carbonbrief.org/...
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Ellie Mae O'Hagan @elliemaeohagan.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
Huge respect for Ed Miliband's refusal to back down to pressure over North Sea oil. The fact is drilling for oil in the North Sea will do NOTHING to fix the Iran crisis. The only long term solution to this crisis, and others that will follow, is renewables. Anyone who says otherwise has an agenda
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Zoe Avison @zoeavison.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
What does it mean when we say the North Sea is a mature basin? This by @frankiemayo.bsky.social illustrates it well. The major spoils have already been tapped, additional discoveries are smaller and more technically complex (expensive). You can't argue with geology.
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Doug Parr @dougparr.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Is anyone surprised? A voluntary certification scheme to limit gas leaks from US production sites isn't working BP & ExxonMobil are among producers wanting certification to comply with EU rules Yet gas-imaging cameras revealed “huge emissions” at many sites www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Invisible plumes and ‘terrible pollution’: the reality of the US gas sites rated ‘grade A’
Exclusive: Guardian investigation into reliability of methane certification issued by MiQ reveals weakness of voluntary model
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
🔥 Energy bills are set to rise to £1,929 from July - a £288 increase. 💸 Our dependency on fossil fuels is making us poorer. 🌳 To bring down bills - & protect the planet - we need to get off oil and gas as fast as possible! Me in @scotnational.bsky.social
Quote in The National newspaper: 

Robert Palmer, Deputy Director of Uplift, warned the effects could go beyond energy bills: “This is a blow to UK households but not unexpected. The Iran conflict is set to bring a painful economic hit to the UK with higher energy bills, rocketing food prices and more expensive mortgages.”

He added: “It’s clear that the UK’s dependence on fossil fuels is making all of us poorer.”
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Peter Geoghegan @petergeoghegan.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
Am not an energy analyst but why does seem every interview with a U.K. minister this week included a pointed question about why not drilling more in North Sea and almost none about renewables/net zero as an energy security imperative? It’s bizarre, frankly
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
More drilling in North Sea ‘not the answer’ for UK energy security, as former military leaders join a chorus of voices arguing for a rapid push towards renewables
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Simon Evans @drsimevans.carbonbrief.org · 25/03/2026
NEW FACTCHECK: There has been A LOT of debate in the UK on the North Sea Sadly much of it is built on false or misleading claims Me+ @carbonbrief.org colleagues tried to straighten things out www.carbonbrief.org/factcheck-ni...
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
Great news - renewable energy hit a record today in the UK. A surge in wind and solar generation helping to blunt the impact of the price shock of the war in Iran. Gas generation was just 2.4% of the UK's power mix.
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
⛽ There’s been a lot of chat about the need for more North Sea drilling following the war. But this is a false solution.
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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
@edconway.bsky.social's recent piece in Sky rightly acknowledges that most of the UK’s gas reserves have already been extracted, but he also suggests that "a decent if not overwhelming amount of oil & gas" could still be pumped out, although it's harder & more expensive to extract. A few thoughts:
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
Our dependance on oil and gas is making all of us poorer - except for oil and gas bosses and shareholders, who will be raking it in. To solve this problem we have to move to renewables asap. Me on TalkTv
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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Helpfully Tim Leunig accepts as a premise that more North Sea drilling won’t make oil nor gas more affordable in the UK. But his arguments about tax and the strategic benefit of allowing more North Sea licensing are flawed in key ways (as well as in ways that James has pointed out). Long 🧵 below:
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Pod Save the UK @podsavetheuk.crooked.com · 24/11/2025
Our politicians need to be where the conversations are happening… but is Ed Miliband taking it too far? To hear more from Deputy Director of Uplift @robertnpalmer.bsky.social, catch up with the pod now. We discuss Rachel Reeves' potential cuts to the Warm Homes Plan. #ASMR #Politics #UK
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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
Huge news from the UK today: after UN climate talks in which there was a massive fight over language on fossil fuels, the UK government today announced that it will in fact be keeping many millions of barrels of oil & gas in the ground. Deeds rather than just words for a change! 🧵
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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
The Scottish Affairs Committee's report on North Sea policy is absolutely right to conclude that, in recent years, there has been a disastrous failure to plan for job losses at Grangemouth and in North Sea oil & gas. But its findings are unfortunately already out of date. More detail in the 🧵:
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Jessica Elgot @jessicaelgot.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
Read this sorry story about how an academic was axed from conference panels because he was deemed too interesting. He was told no one on the panel was expected to air difficult opinions in front of MPs that could damage the oil and gas sector www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Academic axed from Labour conference panel for criticising energy policy
Sustainability expert was told panellists discussing North Sea oil and gas were meant to ‘agree entirely’ with each other
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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Scotland has everything it needs to win big from the energy transition: a proud industrial heritage, skilled energy workforce & world class renewable resources. As the 2026 elections approach, Uplift has developed our proposals for making energy work for Scotland: 🧵 www.upliftuk.org/post/make-en...
upliftuk.org
Make Energy Work for Scotland - Blogpost from Uplift (News)
Scotland has everything it needs to win big from the energy transition. But right now, it is missing out. Here are our proposals for the next Scottish Government to ensure that it delivers for Scotlan...
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Robert Palmer @robertnpalmer.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
A good news story! I spoke to The Standard Tech Science Daily podcast on how renewables have now surpassed coal for electricity generation this year
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Luke Murphy MP @lukemurphy.bsky.social · 03/10/2025
For ~20yrs the Climate Change Act has powered clean growth & climate action Proud to co-ordinate 124 MPs & Peers to urge the Conservatives, don’t scrap it Turning climate leadership into a political football puts our economy, security & children’s future at risk #ClimateAction
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