Humza Yousaf has today been accused of “breathtaking hypocrisy” for “masquerading as a friend of Scotland’s oil and gas industry”.
Douglas Ross says the First Minister has a nerve trying to pose as a friend of the North-East when he and his party have repeatedly signalled their hostility to the sector which supports tens of thousands of jobs and is central to Scotland’s economy and energy security.
The Scottish Conservative leader pointed out that the SNP’s policy is a ‘presumption against’ any new oil and gas licences being granted. They also opposed the Rosebank project and were the first party to call for a windfall tax on energy companies.
His comments came as the SNP leader prepared to deliver a speech highlighting Labour’s hostility to oil and gas. Douglas Ross says “the reality is you can barely put a cigarette paper” between the two parties on the issue and that only the Scottish Conservatives have the back of the industry.
Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said: “Humza Yousaf is displaying breath-taking hypocrisy masquerading as a friend of Scotland’s oil and gas industry when he and the SNP have abandoned it at every opportunity.
“The SNP have a long-standing ‘presumption against’ policy on all new oil and gas licences, they oppose Rosebank, they were the first party to call for a windfall tax and it’s only a few months since Humza Yousaf was proclaiming the end of the industry in a speech in New York.
“Labour’s plans for oil and gas would be catastrophic for North-East communities, the wider Scottish economy and our energy security – but the SNP are equally committed to turning off the taps in the North Sea straight away.
“Humza Yousaf must think people in the North-East are buttoned up the back if they’re to believe the SNP is a friend of the oil and gas industry, when his partnership with the extremist Greens is predicated on shutting it down.
“The reality – as on so many other issues – is that you can barely put a cigarette paper between Labour and the SNP on this.
“Their position is economically and environmentally illiterate because it would decimate jobs and communities while increasing our reliance on imported fossil fuels with a bigger carbon footprint.
“The Scottish Conservatives are the only party standing up for this crucial industry.”
Notes
The SNP’s Draft Energy Strategy includes a presumption against new exploration for oil and gas. The report states that ‘in order to support the fastest possible and most effective just transition, there should be a presumption against new exploration for oil and gas’. (Scottish Government, Draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, 10 January 2023, link)
The SNP’s just transition chief was not consulted on this strategy and has highlighted that he is ‘deeply concerned’ over the oil and gas strategy. Professor Skea said ‘the view of the commission is that this high-level briefing does not constitute consultation on the plan, and we would not expect other parties to gain the impression we had been consulted.’ And that the commission is ‘deeply concerned about the lack of evidence of adequate policy actions to deliver a just transition for the energy sector’. (The Herald, 11 January 2023, link)
Humza Yousaf said Scotland will no longer be Europe’s oil and gas capital. Yousaf said: ‘We will transition from being the oil and gas capital of Europe to unleashing our renewable potential and becoming the net-zero capital of the world. We will show moral leadership and ensure funding for loss and damage is not just pledged but paid and I would urge other nations to join us. The very existence of humanity depends on it.’ (BBC News, 19 September 2023, link).
Humza Yousaf expressed disappointment after Rosebank Oil field was given the green light by the North Sea Transition Authority. Yousaf said: ‘I'm disappointed #Rosebank has been given the go-ahead. We've raised concerns that the majority of what is extracted from Rosebank will go overseas, not remain in Scotland or the UK.’ (Twitter, 27 September 2023, link).
Humza Yousaf said ‘our future is not in unlimited oil and gas extraction’. Yousaf said: SNP Ministers ‘recognise the significant contribution the oil and gas sector make to Scotland. However, our future is not in unlimited oil and gas extraction - it is in accelerating our just transition to renewables. New oil and gas fields being approved risk the pace of that transition.’ (Herald, 27 September 2023, link).
Humza Yousaf in the wake of the impending closure of Grangemouth Oil refinery made clear a transition away from oil and gas is needed. Questioned on the extent of potential job losses at the site, Yousaf said: ‘We’ve seen that they could be quite significant… I’ve met with the oil and gas industry on a number of occasions as First Minister, but in the face of a climate crisis, we’ve also made clear that we must move towards a just transition.’ (The Scotsman, 22 November 2023, link).
Stephen Flynn called for a windfall tax on oil and gas profits back in March 2022. Flynn moved a motion in the House of Commons that said: ‘implement a windfall tax on companies which are benefitting from significantly increased profits as a result of impacts associated with the covid-19 pandemic or the current international situation’ (Hansard, 16 March 2022, link).