Exploit last North Sea oil and gas or risk mass job losses, Andy Burnham urged

Andy Burnham should be ready to exploit the UK’s remaining North Sea oil and gas resources to avoid mass job losses in Scotland and the north-east, the director of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), Shevaun Haviland, has said. The decision about whether to allow extraction at the Jackdaw and Rosebank fields now appears likely to fall to a Burnham administration. Asked about it, Haviland said: “At the moment, instead of using those fields we are importing liquid gas, which is more expensive and less environmentally friendly. So yes, we believe we should use our own assets.” She was speaking as the business group, which represents 19,000 firms employing 8 million people, prepares for a high-profile conference in London on Thursday. Politicians from five political parties, including the Labour chancellor Rachel Reeves and Green leader Zack Polanski, will address the gathering. Haviland, a former senior civil servant, said British businesses backed the transition to clean energy and were keen to exploit the opportunities it presented. But she said the switch to offshore wind was not creating enough jobs to soak up workers displaced as the North Sea wound down; and local suppliers were being closed instead of supplying the new industries. “It’s just not being managed in the right way. We are absolutely behind the incredible leadership we’ve seen in offshore wind, where we’re a world leader. We are not investing enough in building a local supply chain to support that. …