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

Article

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.

Related items

  1. The Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, River Thames and Westminster Bridge

    Taxing choices: Taking the public’s temperature ahead of the budget

    The stakes for a government are rarely higher than at a budget. Every chancellor has dealt with this differently. Ken Clarke would draft his budget speech with cigars and whisky, Gordon Brown pored over every word in what officials called…
  2. Scottish parliament building at Holyrood and Calton Hill, Edinburgh

    Great expectations: Rejuvenating the national debate in Scotland

    Fresh IPPR Scotland polling shows that politicians must raise their game if next year’s election is a to be serious debate about the challenges facing Scotland and potential solutions. 
  3. A Black man in a bright orange high vis jacket and hard hat stands in the middle of a road holding a sign that says 'STOP - WORKS'

    Unfinished business: Redressing inequality in British policy and Black lives

    As conversations about race and equality continue to evolve, Black History Month remains a powerful invitation to pause, reflect, and recommit to progress.