Protesters have gathered on Whitehall over the Government’s decision to approve the Jackdaw gas field.
While unions and oil company Shell welcomed the move, climate activists condemned the “maddening” decision.
Amanda Grimm, advocacy lead for Stop Climate Chaos Scotland, said: “Drilling the Jackdaw field will do nothing to solve our problems. It will not cut sky-high power bills for struggling households.
“It will not stop the loss of North Sea jobs. And it will not provide reliable energy supplies for the future.
“Burning the last of our gas will merely help cook the climate while ordinary folk foot the bill.”
Protesters outside the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) in Westminster
PA
Jake Atkinson, spokesperson for the Stop Trump Coalition, said: "Donald Trump says 'drill, baby, drill' – now, sadly, the British government is capitulating to his agenda, even in the face of heatwaves and wildfires.
"This decision will not lower energy bills. It will only exacerbate the climate crisis and enrich the fossil fuel companies profiteering from it.
"Meanwhile, the British public are bearing the brunt: thousands of premature deaths from extreme heat, food prices on the rise, and transport infrastructure breaking apart.”
Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh backed the scheme, which is expected to start supplying gas to British homes and firms within weeks.
She is now under pressure to approve the separate Rosebank oil and gas field as a further sign of commitment to the North Sea and domestic energy production.
Unions also approved of the decision.
The Jackdaw field will start supplying gas to homes and businesses from the end of the month
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Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “In my conversations with the Prime Minister and the Chancellor, I have been very clear that whilst we of course support net zero, we cannot have a jobless transition, abandon our energy security or offshore our carbon responsibilities. That is why we have argued for this decision on Jackdaw.
“This gives us a bit more time to create and fund a concrete plan for commensurate jobs for workers currently working in the North Sea. Now we urgently need to use that and invest in industries like wind turbine manufacture and refining green jet fuel. We simply cannot let go of one rope until we have hold of another.”
GMB welcomed the decision as “great news”, with the union’s general secretary Gary Smith saying: “Andy Burnham’s Government deserves real credit for doing the right thing for our country.
“For too long, this and other vital decisions on our gas supplies and storage have been put off, risking the UK’s energy security at a time of worrying international volatility.
“This positive direction of travel must continue at pace.”
The approval of Jackdaw is an “important step” for the North Sea, according to Shell.
The energy giant is one of the joint owners of Jackdaw operator Adura.
Tony Nunan, Shell UK chief of staff, said: “Shell welcomes the UK Government’s decision on Jackdaw.
“This is an important step in ensuring the UK North Sea can continue to contribute to the country’s energy security and economy.
“Long-term energy projects depend on a competitive and stable investment environment, alongside timely and predictable regulatory decisions.”
Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh backed the scheme
PA Wire
Reaction to the news among Labour MPs was mixed.
Former chancellor Rachel Reeves was among those to welcome the decision.
“I welcome today’s decision on Jackdaw. I have always argued that we should use our own resources to enhance our energy security,” she wrote on X.
“This means homegrown energy supplying British homes and businesses and backing a highly skilled and experienced workforce in Aberdeen, all while raising revenue for the Exchequer.
“In an increasingly unstable world this is a move in the right direction to give us more control over vital resources.”
But Leeds East MP Richard Burgon, who is on the left of the Labour Party, said it was an “absolutely terrible decision”, adding: “It will do nothing to lower people’s energy bills or improve our energy security.
“Investing in renewable energy is the way to do that. The Government has got this badly wrong. It must not repeat the same mistake with Rosebank.”
Energy minister Michael Shanks has acknowledged that Jackdaw’s impact on national elements of the UK’s energy supply and security will be “relatively marginal” in the long-term picture.
Mr Shanks told MPs: “Clearly domestic production from the UK continental shelf is important in an uncertain world. If we can get it from the North Sea, that does provide benefits to us.
“But I also want to be really clear that in the long-term picture, it is relatively marginal in terms of the overall picture.
“We will not stop being a net importer of fossil fuels because of this decision.”
He added: “Our long-term trend for more than two decades now has been to import more. That’s not going to change.
“And our answer long-term – to that security and resilience point is – to break away from fossil fuels so that we do have energy sovereignty here in the UK. That’s going to come from renewables and from nuclear. It’s not going to come from oil and gas.”