Scotland 1 Ireland 031 Jul 2023 09:19
While environmentalists and many scientists have warned that new fossil fuel projects are incompatible with net zero targets, Sunak told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme that the 100 new North Sea oil & gas licences were integral to the plan.
“When we reach net zero in 2050, a quarter of our energy needs will still come from oil and gas, and domestic gas production has about a quarter or a third of the carbon footprint of imported gas,” Sunak said.
“So not only is it better for our energy security, not to rely on foreign dictators for that energy, not only is it good for jobs, particularly Scottish jobs, it’s actually better for the environment because there’s no point in importing stuff from halfway around the world, with two to three times the carbon footprint of the stuff we’ve got at home.”