North Sea Energy

Viscount Thurso Excerpts

Wednesday 12th March 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)]

I hope that the noble Baroness is not trying to put all the problems created by the last 14 years of the Conservative Government at the door of Ed Miliband. We know that the economy has problems, as a result of disastrous decisions made by recent Ministers of the party opposite.

To re-emphasise what I was saying, the impression that the situation is rosy and needs to be continued with is entirely false. I repeat what I said in my opening comments: oil and gas production has seen a natural decline of 72% between 1999 and 2023, and, as a result, the industry has lost around a third of the direct workforce. The problems are there. We are taking the opportunity to do the right thing by moving towards net zero, and doing so in a way that brings hope, jobs and the prospect of future prosperity to an area that, frankly, has been struggling for some time.

In my experience, public opinion on fracking is at an all-time low. The noble Baroness should reflect on the comments that she made. The Secretary of State has laid out a positive agenda, one that is supported with clear milestones, and a total commitment to moving forward to make this work for the economy of the whole of the United Kingdom.

[Viscount Thurso (LD)]

My Lords, I join my noble friend on the Front Bench in broadly welcoming the Statement. The Beatrice wind farm, which has been extremely successful, has its operating headquarters and all its service boats in the port of Wick. It has been a tremendous economic boon for the east coast of Caithness. I expect that further developments, such as the west of Orkney wind farm—which is in the Atlantic, not the North Sea, but is broadly the same proposition—and the other wind farm in the North Sea will have a similarly beneficial economic impact. I firmly believe that the economic future of the UK is a very bright one, using high technology and renewable energy.

Declaring my interest as chair of the Caithness District Salmon Fishery Board, I echo my noble friend’s concern regarding the balance with the environment. There is a conflict in some instances between development and the marine environment. I am aware that we are not going to stop anything, nor would be want to, but we want to ensure that the proper processes are gone through, so that we know what we are doing and therefore can take proper mitigating action. I am aware that the Minister cannot give me an answer, because it is entirely down to MD-LOT and the consenting unit in Scotland, but I thought that I would try to get it on the record anyway.