UK to be hit hardest from Iran war, says IMF: comment

"The IMF's warning comes after the OECD essentially said the same [2], both citing our reliance on oil and gas as an Achilles heel for UK growth. Back in 2022 the IMF said pretty much the same following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, that UK households were badly hit because of our reliance on gas for both heating and electricity generation [3]. Experts are clear that more drilling in the UK has no significant impact on the prices we pay [4].

"The North Sea is in terminal decline with around 90% of oil and gas already extracted even when looking at the industry's own ambitious estimates [5]. This means our imports will rise, putting us at even greater risk during the next crisis unless we reduce our demand for oil and gas. That means increasing uptake of net zero technologies like electric heat pumps, and continuing to roll out British wind and solar that shield us from volatility, with large wind farms even lowering the wholesale power price by around a third last year [6].”