Reform energy and net zero proposals: comment

"The North Sea is a mature oil and gas basin in long-term decline, meaning that even if new licences were issued and those licences led to new production, overall output would still continue to fall. Pursuing an energy policy that prioritises oil and gas over homegrown renewables is, quite simply, a recipe for making Scotland more dependent on imported energy controlled by foreign actors like Putin and Trump – and would leave Scottish households even more exposed to volatility in global energy markets.

"Renewables are bringing down prices here and now – with wind cutting the wholesale price of electricity by a third last year (1). And with roughly two thirds (65%) of Scots saying that we should reject Donald Trump’s calls to boost oil and gas production and focus on growing our renewables sector instead (2), undermining Scotland’s growing clean energy sector may not be a vote winner."