Tory MP to resign after the hols.

[JohnD]

Chris Skidmore: Tory MP quits over new oil and gas licences

"Chris Skidmore says he will resign the Conservative whip over new legislation which he argues ‘clearly promotes the production of new oil and gas’.

Mr Skidmore was elected as MP for Kingswood in 2010 and was minister of state jointly at the Department for Education and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy between 2019 and 2020.

In a statement shared on X he said his resignation was prompted by the Offshore Petroleum Licensing Bill, which will be introduced to the House of Commons next week."

Metro.co.uk

 

[big-all]

if you want energy control or security you cant put licences out to tender
you pump in masses off public money to be in control off the assests with risk and reward and there distribution otherwise its a global asset with zero government influence or control just money to the exchequer in a normal comercial way

 

[Odds]

Both Labour and the SNP have criticised the proposals in the bill on the grounds that it will not lower consumers bills, improve security of supply or be compatible with the UK’s net zero ambitions. Labour have also announced that they would honour any existing licences but would not issue any new oil or gas licences. The bill has been supported by the oil and gas industries but opposed by NGOs and academic groups in the UK.

Download the whole shebang @Commons Library.parliament.uk

 

[motorbiking]

He had already announced plans to leave Parliament at the next election.

 

[JohnD]

"Former UK chancellor Kwarteng to leave parliament at next election

Former UK chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has announced that he will step down in the coming general election."

Who could have seen that coming?

 

[ajohn]

There never seems to be any rational aspects considered in areas like this.

Fact gas will be needed for some period in the future. Unlikely to be a short one and we have the infrastructure needed to use it. That's why we are importing it. Liquefying it generates it's own CO2 as do the ships that deliver it.

N Sea licenses - they always come with conditions. Do you really think it will be liquefied and exported?

China - The country spent $546 billion in 2022 on investments that included solar and wind energy, electric vehicles and batteries. That is nearly four times the amount of U.S. investments, which totaled $141 billion. The European Union was second to China with $180 billion in clean energy investments.30 Jan 2023
UK can only find what we need
Investment in the green economy – Private investment will be crucial to delivering net zero, building climate resilience and supporting nature’s recovery. We estimate that to deliver on the UK’s net zero ambitions, through the late 2020s and 2030s, an additional £50-60 billion capital investment will be required each year.[footnote 4] A 2021 report estimated that over the next 10 years, our domestic nature-related goals could require between £44-97 billion of investment[footnote 5]. This investment will support the sectors and technologies of the future, enable traditional sectors to adapt and thrive as part of the transition, and presents a significant opportunity to level up the UK, including those parts with an industrial heritage.

Mobilising green investment: 2023 green finance strategy

www.gov.uk

Zero chance of a sudden switch. Plus

Climate mitigation	Legally binding target to reach net zero by 2050, and stay within our carbon budgets.

 

[JohnD]

Scott Benton is off.

 

[JohnD]

"Robert Halfon announced he was resigning as an education minister, while James Heappey followed through on a previous promise to step down as armed forces minister.

Both MPs are standing down at the next general election."

 

[ajohn]

The local elections are due in May. Some pundits think more Tory MP's wil; step down following these.

I wonder what this change will do
These are to be the second set of local elections held under the Elections Act 2022, a voter identification law that was controversial,[4][5] meaning voters are required to show photo ID when attending a polling station. This also means that the mayoral and police and crime commissioner elections will use a first-past-the-post voting system rather than the previously used supplementary vote system.

 

[ajohn]

In June 2023, the UK Electoral Commission found that 14,000 people were turned away from voting during the local elections in May for not having a required form of ID.[59] The Commission stated that there were “concerning” signs that voters with disabilities, unemployed people and people from particular ethnic groups could be disproportionately affected by the new ID rules. The Commission also carried out separate polling which found that 4% of people who did not vote did not because of the new ID rules, it estimated that at least 400,000 people could not or chose not to vote due to the new ID rules.[60]