No new oil fields
The Scottish Greens are the only party that is levelling with voters about the need to stop new oil and gas exploration in the North Sea.
The Greens have called for the windfall tax on oil giants to be tightened to remove the loopholes and reinvest the eye-watering profits that they are making from Trump’s illegal and immoral war against Iran.
With Labour and SNP trying to face both ways, and Reform and the Tories actively calling for more drilling, it is vital that we have a record number of Scottish Green MSPs making the case for an end to drilling and the investment that we need in clean, green renewable energy.
Last week BP announced that its Q1 profits have doubled due to Trump’s war in Iran,
The party’s co-leader, Gillian Mackay, said:
“New oil and gas fields will do nothing to lower bills and will only fast-track the climate crisis.
“We all need to be honest about that, but the Scottish Greens are the only party prepared to tell the truth. The SNP and Labour are pretending that new drilling is compatible with climate action, while the Tories and Reform are actively wanting to scrap Scotland’s climate laws.
“The huge price fluctuations caused by Donald Trump’s illegal war in Iran show exactly why we need to shift away from fossil fuels and on to renewables both to cut the cost of living and to protect our national security.
“When other parties claim that exploration in Rosebank will lower bills they are actively misleading people, and they know it.
“Clean, green and locally produced energy is the safest, cheapest and best energy available. Scotland’s future should be about fast-tracking the just transition our workers, planet and households need and deserve.
“A renewable energy sector, based at home, is where long-term jobs can and must be created. Oil and gas jobs managed by multinational corporations are in long-term decline and that will only continue, no matter how much of our North Sea we give up for them to exploit.
“If we don’t tax their profits to invest in a clean energy future, they will just keep leaving their workers on the economic scrapheap as we have seen in Grangemouth and Mossmorran.
“We cannot drill our way out of the climate crisis, and ignoring the devastating consequences will only make things worse.”
Gillian added:
“It’s indefensible that so many, including John Swinney, are calling for massive tax cuts for oil giants when they are recording such grotesque profits, bills are going up and the same corporations are failing to support any kind of transition for workers and communities.
“It is the last thing we should be doing at a time when millions of households are struggling with the soaring cost of bills and the weekly shop.
“Instead of ending the windfall tax, we should be closing the loopholes and making it stronger to support people in fuel poverty and fund our transition to a cleaner, greener future.”
