PM press conference on Iran war: comment

"With the IMF warning that the UK’s dependence on gas could leave it one of the worst hit economies in Europe by the fallout from the war in Iran [1], the UK Government is understandably keen to prioritise the re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz.

"But if returning output through the Strait is as a complex and fraught a process as some experts are predicting, and with no obvious resolution in sight, the British public will continue to face mounting costs - with the price at the petrol pumps already rising and energy bills forecast to climb by nearly £300 in July [2]. Reducing our dependence on volatile fossil fuels is now, as the National Security Strategy recognised last year [3], essential to reducing the UK’s exposure to global headwinds beyond its control and improving its economic and energy resilience - as well as being the only route we have to reach net zero and halt the increasing costs being caused by worsening climate change impacts".