Burnham: Rosebank and Jackdaw Approvals Coming 'Shortly' — SkimNews
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- Andy Burnham told Prime Minister's Questions that a decision on approving the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields would come "shortly," saying he had to wait for a government process "struck down by the courts under the Conservative government" to be fixed.
- Kemi Badenoch urged Burnham to "stop faffing about" and approve the fields, arguing that Jackdaw gas — all of which she said goes onto the British grid — could already be warming British homes this winter if he had approved them in July.
- Rosebank, roughly 80 miles northwest of Shetland, is Britain's largest untapped oil field, while Jackdaw, about 150 miles east of Aberdeen, is a gas field whose operators say it could be connected to the UK network within months.
- The Court of Session in Edinburgh ruled last year that both fields had been unlawfully approved because the government failed to account for the climate impact of burning the extracted oil and gas.
- Licences for the two fields were originally granted by the Conservative government in 2022 and 2023, prompting legal challenges from environmental groups.
- Environmentalists say more drilling is unconscionable and hampers carbon-cutting efforts, while industry bodies argue production will create jobs and strengthen UK energy security against overseas supply threats.
Why it matters: The pending decision tests whether Burnham will keep Labour's pledge not to issue new oil and gas licences while still honouring existing ones — a stance environmentalists say is contradictory and industry says is essential for UK energy security and jobs. With the courts already having struck down the original approval, the government's hand is constrained by both legal precedent and political pressure from both sides.
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