Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment has been made of the potential effect on the UK's (a) total carbon emissions and (b) ability to filful its commitments as a signatory to the Paris agreement on climate change of the carbon emissions generated by the consumption of oil and gas produced as a result of the UK’s 31st offshore licensing round.

The independent oil and gas regulator, the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA), has a principal statutory objective to maximise the economic recovery of petroleum from the UK Continental Shelf. This informs their licensing decisions. In the UK, we have been producing oil and gas from offshore fields for more than 50 years and the 31^st offshore licensing round could offer further opportunities to contribute to the UK’s diverse energy mix as we transition to a low carbon economy.

Oil and gas will continue to play an important role as part of the energy mix for decades to come. Greenhouse gas emissions from all sectors of the UK’s economy are taken into account when assessing our performance against the carbon budgets.

The UK remains committed to the Paris Agreement and we are leading the world in our response to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s special report on global warming of 1.5°C– commissioning the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) for their advice on the implications of the Paris Agreement for the UK’s long-term emissions reduction targets, just one week after its publication. As part of this, we have requested that they provide evidence on how reductions in line with the CCC’s recommendations might be delivered in key sectors of the economy and we will consider their advice carefully when it is received.