Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s administration is expected to defer final decisions on two significant North Sea oil and gas projects, Rosebank and Jackdaw, until next month. The delay reportedly stems from governmental concerns regarding the “optics” of approving new fossil fuel extraction amidst recent severe heatwaves and devastating wildfires across the UK.
The consultations for both the Rosebank oil field, located off the coast of Shetland and considered the largest undeveloped oil field in the North Sea, and the Jackdaw gas field, situated 150 miles off Aberdeen, have concluded. These projects are now awaiting approval from the UK Government, with Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh also playing a key role in the decision-making process.
This renewed scrutiny comes as the UK has experienced a summer of extreme weather. Wildfires have ravaged various regions, including the Cairngorms National Park in northeast Scotland and Stourbridge in the West Midlands, where multiple homes were destroyed and paramedics treated dozens for heat and smoke-related issues. Prime Minister Burnham described Britain as a “tinder box” in August 2026, with May and June heatwaves already linked to over 2,700 excess deaths in England and Wales.
Environmental organisations have intensified their opposition. Oxfam’s analysis suggests that the combined lifetime emissions from Rosebank and Jackdaw could contribute to an estimated 65,495 excess heat deaths globally. This figure, derived using the mortality cost of carbon formula, is equivalent to the entire population of Inverness. Rosebank alone is projected to emit 254 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent over its lifespan.
Despite these concerns, Prime Minister Burnham has articulated a pragmatic view on continued North Sea extraction. “We won’t be able to stop using oil and gas for some time, that’s just a fact,” he stated. “The question is whether we can accelerate use of it so that we pay for the transition, and one thing helps the other … whether that extraction can be the bridge to the clean energy future we need, and bring it forward. It’s about a pragmatic approach to both of those.”
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero also affirmed that “The North Sea remains a vital national asset, supporting jobs, growth and the UK’s energy security.”
Scottish Conservative MP for Aberdeen South, Douglas Lumsden, said: “It’s totally inexcusable that Labour are again kicking the can down the road on a decision about Jackdaw and Rosebank – four years after the Conservatives first approved these fields.
“No more time can be wasted, but Andy Burnham is already showing he is out his depth as Prime Minister by sitting on the fence during major uncertainty for the North Sea industry and its workforce.
“If he had a backbone and was determined to bring down bills and safeguard our energy security, then approving Jackdaw and Rosebank would be an easy decision for him.
“Instead, these delays now place doubt on if the two fields will be operational in time for winter.
“Using wildfires as a reason for Labour to ban and tax our oil and gas sector out of business is a cop out and a shameful attempt at making the industry a scapegoat for a far wider issue.
“The sector is part of the solution, not the problem, which is why we must get Britain drilling again rather than relying on costly foreign imports.
In Case You Missed it:
Urgent decisions on Rosebank and Jackdaw needed for national security – OEUK
OEUK response to public consultation on £10.8 billion Rosebank and Jackdaw energy projects
North Sea drilling decision looms as Jackdaw consultation closes
Burnham Government faces scrutiny over North Sea oil decision as Rosebank consultation closes
The potential approvals stand in tension with the Labour Party’s 2024 manifesto, which pledged not to issue new licences for oil and gas exploration in the North Sea. Scottish Greens co-leader Gillian Mackay criticised this potential divergence, stating that approving projects like Rosebank would be “reckless and indefensible” and that Burnham “should have honoured his party’s manifesto, and immediately rejected Trump’s demand to open up the North Sea.”
Robert Palmer, deputy director of Uplift, added: “While the oil and gas industry does everything in its power to push Burnham into Trump’s drill baby, drill agenda, the nation’s new prime minister has watched the UK and Europe burn baby, burn.”
The final decisions, to be made through a quasi-judicial process, will be closely watched as a key test of the Labour government’s energy and climate policies.
