Burnham faces North Sea oil test as rising costs force UK to rethink net-zero strategy

MANCHESTER, England (CN) — Prime Minister Andy Burnham is facing a decision that could define his government’s energy policy: whether to allow further development of oil and gas fields in the North Sea as he reconsiders how quickly Britain should move away from fossil fuels.Burnham said in July he would take a “pragmatic” approach to North Sea oil and gas, telling reporters after a call with U.S. President Donald Trump that Britain could not ignore its offshore resources while people were struggling with high energy costs.Trump said Burnham told him he would “open up” North Sea oil, off the northeast coast of Scotland. The president has repeatedly urged the U.K. to increase oil and gas production.The government must decide in the coming weeks whether two controversial projects — the Rosebank oil field west of Shetland and the Jackdaw gas field east of Aberdeen — can proceed.Both were OK’d under the previous Conservative government, but legal challenges forced the projects back through an environmental review process after courts found their greenhouse gas impacts had not been properly considered.The decisions have gained urgency as Burnham’s government also reviews national electric vehicle sales rules, raising wider questions over whether Britain is slowing its transition away from fossil fuels or simply trying to manage its economic costs.The U.K.’s legally binding net-zero target requires overall greenhouse gas emissions to reach zero by 2050.Supporters of North Sea oil drilling argue domestic oil and gas production would reduce the country’s reliance on imports and bring energy prices down.Energy experts say that overstates the importance of the U.K.’s remaining reserves, arguing the country would gain greater long-term security by reducing its dependence on fossil fuels altogether and expanding renewable energy.Long decline of North Sea oil“I’m not yet convinced that Andy Burnham will have a less committed approach to climate policy,” said Jim Watson, a professor of energy policy at the University College London Institute for Sustainable Resources.“The big risk of weakening the shift away from fossil fuels is that it leaves the U.K. exposed to more price shocks,” Watson said.The U.K. remains heavily dependent on gas for heating and electricity generation. But Watson said expanding North Sea production would do little to shield consumers.“The U.K. is a small producer, and production is well past the peak of around 25 years ago,” Watson said. “Because oil and gas prices are set by the balance of supply and demand in international markets, U.K. production levels will have very little effect on prices.”“Furthermore, the U.K. will still continue to import significant quantities of oil and gas, even if new fields are licensed,” he said.Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham speaks to the media after chairing a COBR meeting at Downing Street on the UK's ongoing response to extreme heat, wildfires and drought in London, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026.(AP Photo/Kin Cheung, Pool)Britain’s North Sea oil and gas industry has been in long-term decline.Production from the U.K. Continental Shelf peaked in 1999, and according to an analysis using government data, about 93% of the oil and gas it is likely to produce has already been extracted.The government’s policy is to not issue licenses to explore new oil and gas fields, but it does allow licenses tied to existing fields.A summer of extremesThe U.K. is experiencing a summer of extreme weather, with five heat waves and half of England and all of Wales enduring drought conditions.Widespread wildfires have engulfed parts of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, fueled by record-breaking temperatures and lack of rain.The government sent an emergency alert to every mobile phone in England and Wales warning not to use barbecues, fire pits or fireworks because of wildfire risk.Conditions have brought renewed attention to the impact of climate change as Burnham considers whether to approve further fossil fuel development.Jan Rosenow, a professor of energy and climate policy at the University of Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute, also rejected the argument that greater North Sea production would meaningfully lower energy bills.“The structural fix for high bills is getting off gas altogether through renewables, batteries, modernization of industries, better-insulated homes and electrified heating but not by slowing that transition down,” he said.An Oxford analysis found a fully renewable British energy system could save households as much as $601 a year, while maximizing North Sea oil and gas extraction could save between $21 and $111 a year if tax revenue from additional production were distributed to households.The electric vehicle testThe energy debate extends to transportation.The government’s review of electric vehicle sales targets could give manufacturers more flexibility as they face pressure to increase zero-emission vehicle sales.Under current law, manufacturers must ensure a percentage of their cars are zero emissions each year, with the target to reach 80% by 2030.Rosenow said a short-term slowdown could ease pressure on some automakers but would create longer-term problems.“Delaying the transition keeps households and the country tethered to petrol and diesel priced on global markets we don’t control,” he said.“It also risks ceding ground in a market where China and the EU are moving decisively,” Rosenow said. “A slower U.K. transition means less certainty for investment in domestic charging and supply chains, not more.”Business and jobs on the lineThe broader argument over net zero has also focused on industrial costs and whether climate policy is contributing to Britain’s economic decline.The right-wing Conservative Party has promised to abandon the U.K.’s 2050 net-zero target, calling it impossible.British businesses pay the highest industrial electricity rates in Europe and among the highest of any developed economy.“The evidence doesn’t support the claim that climate targets are the root cause of high industrial energy costs,” Rosenow said, with prices largely determined by gas as well as policy costs and network charges.“Countries decarbonizing fastest are not deindustrializing as a result,” he added. “Weakening the targets would add more policy uncertainty, which investors consistently cite as the thing most likely to deter the capital needed to bring costs down.”Supporters of further drilling say expanding the North Sea industry would help protect jobs in communities that have long depended on oil and gas.Watson said expanding North Sea drilling could preserve some jobs, but the government would need to weigh that against employment in cleaner sectors.“New licensing might help to preserve some jobs in the North Sea for longer,” Watson said, adding that the Confederation of British Industry estimates the “net zero economy” supports more than 1 million jobs in the U.K., compared with about 180,000 direct and indirect jobs linked to oil and gas, according to industry trade group Offshore Energies UK.BP announced in July plans to sell its North Sea business, which operates five production hubs and employs about 1,100 people.Wildfires, drought and heat waves have made the costs of climate change more visible just as Burnham weighs whether to approve further North Sea drilling.His decision on Rosebank and Jackdaw, alongside the review of electric vehicle targets, will offer the clearest indications yet of whether his government intends to accelerate Britain’s transition away from fossil fuels or adopt a more cautious approach.Courthouse News reporter James Francis Whitehead is based in England.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads