Badenoch criticised for ‘peddling dangerous fantasy’ about North Sea oil drilling | Kemi Badenoch

Kemi Badenoch is “selling a dangerous fantasy” about North Sea energy in his bid to reverse a ban on new oil and gas licences, a leading campaign group has said.

The Conservative leader is expected to call on the government to lift license suspensions as part of a drive to reduce energy prices, as the party launches a new campaign aimed at reviving the fossil fuel sector.

But critics have questioned the efficiency of the policy, claiming it is unlikely to reduce household bills.

Tessa Khan, chief executive of renewable energy campaign group Uplift, described it as “an empty, political game played at the expense of ordinary people”.

“Kemi Badenoch is selling a dangerous fantasy in the North Sea and is completely out of step with the UK public who just want affordable energy supplies,” Khan said. “More drilling will do absolutely nothing to reduce energy bills, a fact he knows and his Cabinet members accept.”

Conservative MP Claire Coutinho, while serving as energy minister in 2023, acknowledged the new licenses “will not necessarily reduce energy bills” but argued they would increase “security” of supply. Coutinho now has the energy briefing in Badenoch’s shadow cabinet.

The Labor government shifted its focus to domestic renewable energy last year, deciding to ban new oil and gas licences.

Global oil prices have risen sharply since the Strait of Hormuz was effectively closed due to the ongoing conflict in Iran, raising concerns about the long-term impact on energy costs.

Badenoch will launch his party’s “Drill in Britain” campaign on Monday on an oil rig off the North Sea near Aberdeen.

He has previously said that drilling in the North Sea is one of the few ways to protect households from rising bills; This view was also expressed by UK Reform leader Nigel Farage.

But experts consistently say North Sea production is too small to affect global prices.

The Guardian reported on Saturday that hundreds of new North Sea licenses granted by the Conservatives between 2010 and 2024 have so far produced just 36 days of gas, according to research by Uplift and energy consultancy Voar.

But Badenoch said: “Labour’s ban on new oil and gas drilling licenses was stupid when they put it in their manifesto – in the middle of an energy crisis it was completely insane.

“Extracting our own oil and gas is about energy security, it’s about financial security, it’s about national security.

“That means more jobs, it’s good for business and it generates tax revenues that can be used to lower bills.”

Badenoch is also expected to call on the government to scrap a windfall tax on energy profits and give more financial support to the fossil fuel industry. Khan described it as “tone deaf” at a time when the public is “incredibly worried about their bills skyrocketing again”.

He added: “Politicians who refuse to accept the reality of North Sea dwindling are endangering our security and our economy. Not only that, they are betraying workers who need long-term, secure jobs that will come only from renewable energy sources, not a pipe dream.”

Greg Jackson, chief executive of green energy company Octopus, argued that further gas drilling in the North Sea “will have little impact on prices” because the UK is “highly integrated” with European and global markets.

“The US is often cited as an example where lots of drilling keeps prices low,” he said. “They are not as integrated with the global markets as we are in terms of gas, but their oil is; as a result, you see that oil prices have increased a lot during this crisis, despite so much domestic production.

“More UK oil and gas would provide greater security of supply if governments controlled exports, but I don’t think drilling advocates are suggesting this.

“And the big picture is that the oil and gas industry will never ‘overproduce,’ so there will never be meaningful spare capacity in the global fossil fuel supply, which is why whenever there is a major supply shock, it has such catastrophic effects on prices.”

A Labor spokesman said: “The strange fact is that Badenoch’s own shadow energy minister has admitted the new licenses will not reduce energy bills.

“Energy bills will fall this week thanks to the actions of a Labor government opposed by the Conservatives.

“The Conservatives and Reform want to hand over Britain’s energy security to fossil fuel markets over which we have no control. Labor is taking back control with record investment in domestic clean energy.”