This week, the government continued pushing legislation through parliament that would mandate the annual licensing of new oil and gas projects.
It is beyond doubt that the offshore petroleum licensing bill is performative politics. Not only does this bill fail to make Britain energy independent, but it does nothing to support oil and gas workers, and, as has been admitted by the energy secretary, it won’t lower bills either. The construction of new oil and gas projects also threatens our ocean wildlife and undermines the UK’s commitment to protect 30% of the sea for nature by 2030.
This bill does achieve two things, however. First, by sowing division it fractures the UK’s valuable political consensus on climate action. And second, it sends an unmistakable message to the global community that Britain is no longer a leader on this critical agenda, but a laggard, doubling down on fossil fuels and holding back the transition to renewables, just at the moment when we should be accelerating.
The only way to bring down energy bills for the long term, deliver genuine energy security and give ourselves a chance of maintaining a safe, livable planet, is by massively scaling up renewable energy and insulating homes. We cannot afford any more distractions.
Caroline Lucas MP Climate APPG chair, Tommy Sheppard MP Climate APPG vice-chair, Sarah Champion MP Chair of the international development select committee, Daisy Cooper MP Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, Zac Goldsmith Former UK minister for international environment, Ben Lake MP Fuel Poverty and Energy Efficiency APPG chair, Simon Francis End Fuel Poverty Coalition, Hugo Tagholm Executive director, Oceana UK, Dr Daria Shapovalova Aberdeen University, Prof Elizabeth Bomberg University of Edinburgh, Prof Jaime Toney University of Glasgow, Dr Steve Pye University College London