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The Progressive Policy Think Tank
IPPR North IPPR Scotland

Net zero North Sea: A managed transition for oil and gas in Scotland and the UK after Covid-19

The Covid-19 crisis has hit the oil and gas industry hard.

Extraction has shrunk as health restrictions have been put in place and demand has dwindled, threatening tens of thousands of jobs concentrated in Scotland and also across the UK. This is already having an impact on the workers and communities directly employed in the industry, those employed through supply chains and the communities who depend on the industry too.

But, crucially, in this crisis there is a possibility for change. If we are to meet our international climate obligations under the Paris Agreement and legally binding net zero targets passed by both the UK and Scottish parliaments by 2050 and 2045 respectively at the very latest, as well as our wider commitments to restoring nature, we must not return to business as usual. Instead, we must reshape the oil and gas industry, to help us achieve net zero emissions and restore nature in Scotland and across the UK.

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