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The message for the SNP and Labour is that they must now urgently deliver for workers. That means ramping up their plans to create enough good, secure jobs in renewables and other industries and support for workers into these jobs. That is the future for Aberdeen’s economy, not a pipedream. END

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The biggest beneficiaries of more North Sea drilling will be the multinational companies that own and profit from these reserves – not communities that need long-term planning and investment. It will do nothing to lower bills; & the UK has burned most of its gas and most of our oil is exported. 3/

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Hundreds of North Sea licences granted by Conservatives have ‘so far produced only 36 days worth of gas’

Yet, the LOTO has no credible plan for the future of the workforce or energy security.The last gov spent 14 years trying to ‘max out’ the basin, issuing 100s of licences, which has produced just 1 month of gas. Jobs supported by the industry halved in that time /2 www.theguardian.com/business/202...

theguardian.com

Exclusive: Findings cast doubt on claims new drilling would help cut bills and boost energy security, researchers say

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Climate Centre @climatecentreuk.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Re the Aberdeen South-by election, its little surprise the Conservatives have won in a historically Tory seat or that the future of energy dominated debate. Ppl there have been badly served for years w/ successive governments watching the N Sea’s inevitable decline without a plan for their future 🧵

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Wind and Solar have saved the UK £1.7bn in gas imports since the Iran war began. Record renewables pushed gas generation to historic lows in March and April. Wind and solar have now outproduced fossil fuels for 15 months straight, Carbon Brief analysis reveals. www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-win...

carbonbrief.org

Analysis: Wind and solar have saved UK from gas imports worth £1.7bn since Iran war began - Carbon Brief

The UK has avoided the need for gas imports worth £1.7bn since the start of the Iran war, as a result of record electricity generation from wind and solar

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James Murray @james-bg.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

Tony Blair Institute is once again issuing press releases attacking climate policy in support of a report that seems to be mainly calling for more better managed grids and faster electrification.

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Pete Morgan @pm-morgan.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Short but highly informative thread. Please read 👇

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3. Finally, this entire debate overlooks the fact that more than 70% of what's left in the North Sea is oil, the vast majority of which is exported. So if you're talking about new oil & gas fields, for the most part you're not talking about displacing imports at all. END

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Analysis: Record wind and solar saved UK from gas imports worth £1bn in March 2026 - Carbon Brief

2. Most of our gas imports come from Norway which produces less emissions-intensive gas than the UK. Moreover, if you're worried about LNG imports, why not try renewables instead, which have displaced billions of pounds worth of LNG imports in recent years: /3 www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-rec...

carbonbrief.org

The UK avoided the need for gas imports worth £1bn in March 2026 thanks to record electricity generation from wind and solar, reveals Carbon Brief analysis.

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Factcheck: North Sea gas is not ‘four times cleaner’ than LNG imports - Carbon Brief

1. It ignores the impact of actually burning the gas, which is the whole point of extracting it. If you take that into account, as @carbonbrief.org has pointed out, the difference is marginal: www.carbonbrief.org/factcheck-no... /2

carbonbrief.org

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch announced a pledge to drill “all” the remaining oil and gas in the North Sea

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Steve Akehurst @steveakehurst.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

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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Reposted by Tessa Khan

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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Chris Hutchings #ChoirsForClimate @hutchingsmusic.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

The UK's approach to net zero sets the tone for much of the rest of the world because of the amount of "soft power" we have (the US has forfeited most of its soft power in the past year). Our continued insistence on no new oil and gas isn't bad for us, and it's good for lots of other countries.

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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

...When wealthier nations continue to invest in fossil fuels, they undermine this message and diminish their credibility.” I also touched on this in a recent chat with @zackpolanski.bsky.social on his Bold Politics podcast: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/b...

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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

As Mohamed Adow puts it, “countries across Africa are being asked to leapfrog to clean energy systems, often with limited financial support. We are told, often by European nations, that the future lies in renewables, and increasingly we are proving that it does..."

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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

Important piece in the Guardian today about the outsized influence that the UK’s approach to fossil fuels, including approving new oil & gas fields, has on the rest of the world, especially on countries in the global South www.theguardian.com/environment/... (cont'd)

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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Bold Politics @boldpolitics.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

How much does an illegal war in the middle east cost?

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Ewan Gibbs @ewangibbs.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

The latest oil shock has led to a resurgence of North Sea petro nationalism. I’ve written for @the-breakdown.bsky.social on the illusion of plenty behind Reform, Tory and SNP claims that red-green wreckers are sabotaging our energy security by blocking drilling. www.break-down.org/north-sea-na...

break-down.org

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Geoffrey Lean @geofflean.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

This is a must-read thread.

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Our analysis shows earlier NSTA projections have been on a downward trend since 2016, so attributing further downward revisions solely to a specific set of govt policies is questionable. Ultimately the only way to ensure lower bills, secure energy & a safe climate is to move to renewables ASAP. END

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These are guided by the most recent survey data available; changes from previous surveys & comparison w/ others forecasts. Ed points out that the figures for future potential production were revised down after Labour came to power and suggests this could be because of Labour’s changed N Sea policies

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Finally, the science is clear that new drilling isnt compatible with staying within safe climate limits. 4. Government figures are less rosy than the industry's: Ed talks about official figures from the O&G regulator, the NSTA, which estimates how much could be produced to inform fiscal forecasts

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Assumptions that more drilling would lead to wider benefits (tax receipts & jobs) are also highly questionable. In the decade from 2014 jobs in the industry halved, despite hundreds of new licences being issued & new fields being consented.

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3. New drilling won't help now & isn't compatible with a safe climate: the main issue facing us today is affordability, not security of supply, & new drilling won't bring bills down. Most of what would be produced is oil, which is exported, doing little to help domestic supply anyway.

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It also relies on extracting oil & gas that's currently seen as economically and technically unviable. As a result, the industry's analysis itself describes these figures as "beyond realistic" assumptions.

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...to put it mildly, tone deaf when people are anxious about bills. 2. "Beyond realistic" assumptions As well as enormous tax cuts, the industry’s figures for how much oil & gas could be extracted depend on reduced regulation and higher investor appetite for the North Sea, which is simply not there

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..a tax that was introduced to help support people w/ unaffordable energy bills during the last crisis. Even before oil prices spiked, OEUK suggested scrapping the tax would represent a £6bn tax cut for the industry over the next decade. Calling for tax cuts when on the verge of making billions is..

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Crucially, the amount he suggests could still be extracted is based on figures from lobby group OEUK & there are some big problems with their numbers: 1. More production relies on slashing taxes: the premise of the industry's figures is that more O&G is only possible if the windfall tax is scrapped

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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

@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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Hi Andrew! You’re right, though the volume of oil & gas we’re due to import is also due to increase eg gas imports are expected to increase from 55% of demand now to more than two-thirds in 2030. Even if net imports do decrease as you might guess we don’t think that’s worth the carbon lock-in etc

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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

More broadly, it would be a mistake in the middle of a crisis to revisit a policy that would make no difference to our tax take or energy security in the short or even medium term, and even in the long-term would have minimal impact, especially when climate change continues to accelerate.

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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

This is excellent from Andrew on the best approach to tackling the latest fossil fuel crisis. On the North Sea, worth bearing in mind that more than 80% of the oil produced in the UK is exported (& what's left in the NS is mostly oil) so the impact of more oil production on net imports is v limited

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Tessa Khan @tessakhan.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

Amazing! Congrats, Amy--can't wait to read it!

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...and workers with globally transferable skills will choose international roles over UK opportunities if domestic support is inadequate. Having taken welcome steps to address the barriers to oil and gas workers transitioning to alternative energy or priority sectors since being elected... /5

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The stakes are real: Aberdeen and NE Scotland’s economic future depends on a successful transition; the UK’s offshore wind sector, forecast to support 100,000 jobs by 2030, needs access to skilled workers (to say nothing of other sectors that could benefits from those skills)... /4

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Done well, the Jobs Service could play a vital role in connecting highly skilled O&G workers with industries that will power the UK’s energy future. But it can't simply operate as a careers advice service--it has to ensure that workers have genuine pathways into good quality, permanent jobs. /3

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It's unquestionably an important signal that supporting workers has to be at the heart of the energy transition. But with procurement expected in April 2026 and service launch in September 2026, this is the moment to get the design and details of the Jobs Service right. /2

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