As many as 100 Labour MPs want Andy Burnham to allow the start of production from the Rosebank oilfield in the North Sea, a leading Labour MP has told GB News.
Steve Yemm, MP for Mansfield since 2024 and chairman of a cross-party group calling for a “sensible, worker-first approach to North Sea oil and gas”, disclosed the strength of feeling among Labour MPs who want drilling to start.
There are already reports of a split with Chancellor John Healey and Business Secretary Jonthan Reynolds keen for drilling to start against opposition from Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband and Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh.
The remarks to Chopper’s Political Podcast lay bare the pressure the Prime Minister is under from his own backbenchers to deliver the “pragmatic” approach towards drilling in the North Sea which he promised US President Donald Trump in September.
The Labour Government is bound by a 2024 manifesto commitment not to allow new oil and gas fields to be drilled in the North Sea.
Ministers plan to write it into law in coming months.
However, the ban does not cover the Jackdaw gas field – where ministers allowed drilling last – or the Rosebank oil field, which is estimated to hold around 300 million to 500 million barrels of oil.
Asked if the number of Labour MPs who wanted Mr Burnham to green light Rosebank, Mr Yemm said: “It’s almost certainly in that area. It’s really hard to put a number on it. But I do believe that there is strong support for this, and it is based on pragmatism. Support for British jobs, British workers and our own efforts in the North Sea. And I think when I talk to my voters in Mansfield, they find it very difficult to understand why we would be importing oil and gas for decades to come when we can drill for our own and use our own, support our own workforce in the North Sea. The tax revenues that we get from that support in our energy security and potentially lower prices. This will make a somewhat modest contribution to energy security and also to slightly lower prices.”
Jackdaw could deliver around six per cent of the UK’s gas production and provide enough fuel to heat the equivalent of 1.4 million homes. The Conservatives first granted permission for drilling of the field – 150 miles east of Aberdeen – in 2022, but the project was ruled unlawful after a court challenge by climate activists.
Mr Yemm added: “If you think about Jackdaw… It’s somewhat cheaper than having to import liquefied gas from the United States. There’s no transport cost. In fact, emissions will be lower as well.”
No10 has insisted the approval decision for the Rosebank oil field remains an independent, quasi-judicial process led by Ms Fahnbulleh.
A Government review into support for car makers trying to hit a target to ensure that 80 per cent of all cars sold by 2030 are electric is due to report early next year.
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Mr Yemm, whose constituency is near to Toyota’s Burnaston car plant, told the podcast he was “optimistic” the mandated proportion could fall to as low as 50 per cent of new vehicles being electric.
He said: “I hope that we’ll get all the way to 50 per cent.
in this change. But any progress is good on this, and it puts us in a stronger position.”
Mr Yemmadded: “My perspective is, of course, there is a trade-off in emissions here – we have to understand that. But you cannot put consumers in a position where they’re not able to purchase these vehicles or utilise them properly. What we don’t want to do as a result of the EV mandate is really make the UK car market perfect for Chinese manufacturers and other manufacturers. That is a real big problem for us. I think that we need to protect domestic industry. And look, if we have to get to our target on electrification slightly more slowly, but we’re able to protect, UK jobs and UK industry – I think that’s a pragmatic judgement.”
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