Kemi Badenoch vows to remove net zero rules for North Sea drilling
The Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, has announced plans to eliminate all net zero obligations for oil and gas companies operating in the North Sea if her party is elected. Speaking ahead of a formal address in Aberdeen on Tuesday, she said the party would focus on “maximising extraction” and getting “all our oil and gas out of the North Sea.”
Badenoch argued that current net zero policies are driving up energy costs for households. “These rules end up making families pay the price through higher bills,” she claimed.
Government warns of environmental and economic risks
The Labour government, which has pledged to ban new exploration licenses, dismissed Badenoch’s claims. A spokesperson said: “We’ll take no lectures from Kemi Badenoch. Every family and business has already paid the cost of the Conservatives’ failure to secure the UK’s energy.”
Officials cautioned that opening new fields would not reduce bills or enhance energy security, but would worsen the climate crisis.
Shift in Conservative climate policy
Badenoch has signaled a major policy shift, previously declaring that achieving net zero by 2050 would be “impossible.” Successive UK governments, including legislation under Theresa May in 2019, have committed to cutting carbon emissions in line with the Paris Agreement.
Under her proposed plan, oil and gas companies would no longer need to reduce emissions or invest in technologies such as carbon capture. Badenoch described it as “absurd” that the UK leaves resources untapped while countries like Norway exploit the same North Sea reserves.
Industry and international parallels
Badenoch’s position mirrors former US President Donald Trump’s push for increased drilling, reversing measures like Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, which heavily funded clean energy. In 2023, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak issued 100 new North Sea drilling licenses, claiming they were “entirely consistent” with net zero targets.
Major energy firms, including BP, have since scaled back renewable investments in favor of boosting oil and gas production to increase profits.
Critics call plan “reckless”
Environmental campaigners have condemned the proposal. Tessa Khan of Uplift warned that removing net zero obligations would lead to higher emissions, environmental damage, and financial handouts to energy giants without lowering consumer costs.
Liberal Democrat spokesperson Tim Farron described scrapping emission targets as “irresponsible environmental vandalism,” urging the UK to lead in offshore wind and clean energy rather than increasing fossil fuel dependence.
Rising global temperatures heighten urgency
2024 marked the first year with an average temperature above 1.5°C, making it the hottest year on record since 1850, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service. The UK, along with 200 other nations, signed the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5°C and keep it well below 2°C.
Scottish government calls for measured approach
Gillian Martin, Scotland’s energy secretary, emphasized planning for a transition to sustainable fuels while protecting energy security and local jobs.
Industry voices support domestic production alongside renewables
David Whitehouse of Offshore Energies UK argued for responsible domestic oil and gas production alongside accelerated renewable rollout, highlighting the UK’s reliance on energy imports.
The current government noted record investments in offshore wind and carbon capture and storage (CCS) facilities, a technology that traps CO₂ from industrial processes and stores it underground.
Green Party MP Ellie Chowns stressed that investing in green technologies is key to long-term British growth and jobs, framing renewables as the technology of the 21st century.
