Labour may have approved the Jackdaw gas field, but it is still set on destroying our industrial base to save the planet. It’s another to engage in unilateral economic disarmament so China can sell us the cars we used to build. We must reverse this madness, licence drilling in the North Sea, and make energy abundant again, says Richard Tice

At long last, Andy Burnham has had a good idea: lifting a policy from Reform UK. We’re delighted that the Prime Minister has seen the sense of our push to approve drilling at the Jackdaw gas field. If he’d like, we’d be happy to take some other decisions for him too.

We could start with Rosebank. Jackdaw is an important first step in reversing Labour’s deliberate destruction of our North Sea industry, and towards energy security, but it is only that. The Rosebank oil and gas field could replace five per cent of Britain’s energy imports. Together, at peak, they’ll reach eight per cent: vital security of supply in a dangerous world. 

Undoubtedly, the net stupid zero zealots will start dooming and glooming at this point: “It’s only eight per cent”. But the point is that – apart from the billions in revenues for the treasury, the jobs, the support for the pound, and the security of supply – these fields are almost ready to go. And with a bit of smart thinking, we can push much further. 

Billions of barrels

There are billions of barrels of oil, and their equivalent in gas, lying beneath the North Sea. There is an expert, world-leading industry, developed here in Britain, which wants to drill it. And there are British households who are preparing to spend a cold winter shivering in their homes because of high energy prices. 

The Labour party thinks this is perfectly fine. They’re happy for you to be cold to save the planet. China, meanwhile, is opening 85 new coal power plants this year: twice as much capacity as Britain’s entire renewables sector can realistically provide. 

It’s one thing to destroy your industrial base to save the planet. It’s another to engage in unilateral economic disarmament so China can sell us the cars we used to build. We must reverse this madness, licence drilling in the North Sea, and make energy abundant again. 

I’ve pledged to cut bills by £250 in our first 100 days in office. And if I don’t achieve it, I’ll resign

We must also make energy cheaper. Energy is prosperity. Expensive energy means less heavy industry, no manufacturing revival, a weakened chemical industry, and colder, darker homes. Andy Burnham should take a leaf out of our book: make the VAT cut on energy bills permanent, scrap the Emissions Trading Scheme and Carbon Price Support taxes, and take the costs of green boondoggles into general taxation while working to scrap them permanently. Together, these steps will cut energy bills by £250, boosting growth and living standards.

Now, the zealots will claim that it’s impossible to do anything quickly, and that you just have to put up with the misery. Absolute nonsense. If Burnham got into gear today, everything I’ve laid out could be achieved by the end of January – when the price cap is currently set to skyrocket £276. And I mean this: I’ve pledged to cut bills by £250 in our first 100 days in office. And if I don’t achieve it, I’ll resign. 

Regrettably, this is probably wishful thinking. The Labour party is utterly in thrall to net zero, which is why Burnham dithered for so long over Jackdaw in the first place. I’m afraid this brief flash of common sense will be just that: momentary sanity from a party committed to madness. It will take a change of government to give the country a pathway back to an energy policy that will keep the lights on and the bills down.

And if Andy Burnham wants to test the popularity of his ideas in an election, we’re more than ready. Britain is broken. Britain needs Reform.

Richard Tice is business, trade and energy spokesman for Reform UK