Oil and gas workforce must not be left behind

Energy is already shaping up to be a key battleground in the next Westminster election

Agenerally upbeat Labour conference in Glasgow at the weekend did not pass without huge controversy, and Keir Starmer and Anas Sarwar would be wise to take note.

As Sir Keir was leaving the conference stage, it emerged Offshore Energy UK (OEUK) planned to hold “crisis talks” with operator and supply chain companies in Aberdeen and London over Labour’s plans for a windfall tax on profits.

Labour intends to extend the tax to 2029 if they reach government, with the energy profits levy rising to 78 per cent, saying it would raise £10.8 billion over five years to help pay for their green spending plans.

OEUK, and others, however warn the move would be a “hammer-blow” with tens of thousands of jobs put at risk.

For Labour, this has already been difficult territory leading to the scrapping of the high profile £28 billion green pledge.

The party can be reasonably confident it does not need the support of the north-east to form the next government, but the implications for the economy and wider energy security are surely plain to see.

Enter First Minister Humza Yousaf yesterday who accused Labour of threatening to let the north-east go the way “our coal and mining towns went under Thatcher” in a fierce attack on the “aggressive” plans.

This from a First Minister who, remember, is in government at Holyrood with the Greens.

Yousaf says the SNP would oppose the plans but his own party’s policy – and the opinion of his coalition partners – is far from clear.

There has to be a sensible and rapid transition away from oil and gas, and Scotland is best placed to reap the rewards of the huge opportunities if it is done properly. Communities and a highly-skilled workforce must not be left behind.

Energy is already shaping up to be a key battleground in the next Westminster election.

The party which can best plot the route to a sustainable future will reap the rewards.