This article first appeared in The Sun
Developing our North Sea oil and gas has been a Great British
success story.
Since the first wells started producing in the 1960s we have
created a secure domestic energy supply, created thousands of
high quality jobs, delivered billions to the economy and driven
the growth of a huge engineering sector that we have exported to
the world.
Even with the amazing improvements in North Sea production,
volumes are declining and we are now importing almost half of our
gas supplies.
Although we are in no way reliant on Russian gas despite what the
Russians would have you believe.
Because gas is so important for our economy we know that we will
need it for decades to come.
It also fits with our world-beating climate goals as it generates
less CO2 than oil and coal.
That is why every estimate of our 2050 emissions reductions
targets from the independent Climate Change Committee includes
gas in our energy mix and why it is right to continue to look for
gas that can be safely extracted from the potentially huge
reserves hundreds of metres beneath our feet.
And there are other benefits too.
Shale gas extraction could provide a big clean growth boost for
local communities as part of our modern Industrial Strategy –
bringing thousands of high quality jobs, local investment and
financial benefits to many parts of the country.
And our world-leading environmental regulations mean we could
create even more investment and export opportunities from
innovations like recycling waste water.
There are those who argue strongly against shale gas, using the
most colourful and scaremongering language they can find and
intimidating local communities and decision makers with lots of
protestors from out of town.
In my experience, most of these arguments are made by people who
actually just don’t want us to use gas at all – now or ever.
While we should all be hugely proud of our huge progress on
renewables that delivers almost 30 percent of our electricity
needs, we cannot meet our energy and heat needs now, or for many
years to come, at a price we can afford, without using the gas
that geography has gifted us.
That is why we committed to support the development of onshore
British shale gas and to deliver a clean safe and affordable
energy supply for the country.
It is why I have set out these changes to the planning and
regulation regime to make sure there is support available for all
involved in this process.
