Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the proposed ban on issuing new licences to explore oil and gas fields on investment, jobs, tax revenue and the balance of payments.

Forecasts for oil and gas tax revenues are published by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which take into account many factors including the sector’s expectations and the Government’s policy at the time. The most recent forecast was published at Autumn Budget 2024 in the Economic and Fiscal Outlook October 2024 [1] . This also includes other economic projections, including in relation to future investment in the oil and gas sector and the UK’s balance of payments.

Future OBR forecasts will consider any changes to policy that may have an impact on investment in the oil and gas sector, oil and gas production or tax revenues from the sector.

1. https://obr.uk/efo/economic-and-fiscal-outlook-october-2024/