By CLAIRE ELLICOTT, WHITEHALL EDITOR Published: 14:54 BST, 30 September 2025 | Updated: 15:00 BST, 30 September 2025
Rachel Reeves has slapped down Ed Miliband’s Net Zero ambitions, saying she is not a ‘zealot of green energy’.The Chancellor pledged to support ‘homegrown’ supplies from oil and gas developments in the North Sea.Her strong words will deal a blow to the Energy Secretary who has honoured Labour’s manifesto pledge to not issue new licences for exploration in the UK.Mr Miliband has come under pressure from businesses and unions to soften the ban after companies blamed the policy for production cuts and job losses. She is the latest figure to hit out at Mr Miliband, who refused to relinquish his job at the recent reshuffle.In a speech to businesses on Monday night, Ms Reeves said: ‘I talked about homegrown energy, and that is renewables but it is also in the North Sea as well.‘Ahead of the Budget, we should be publishing our North Sea strategy, which I hope will give some certainty to [the sector] to be able to invest in the UK.‘We are going to be reliant on oil and gas for many years to come, and I would prefer us to be using oil and gas from the UK than importing in from overseas.’She told those gathered that she was ‘not a zealot of green energy’, adding: ‘I am really committed to boosting our energy security, because increasingly energy security is national security, so investing in homegrown energy is really important.’Last week it emerged that Mr Miliband was considering weakening the ban by allowing energy companies to drill new oil and gas fields adjacent to existing ones.Despite the Government’s ban, exploration continues, with Shell saying today that it had opened a new gas field which could power two per cent of the UK’s homes and businesses.Mr Miliband is under pressure from unions who have gathered in Liverpool for the party’s annual conference.Gary Smith, the GMB’s general secretary, has claimed that it is ‘absolute madness’ to restrict investment in the North Sea while increasing dependency on costly imports from abroad.US President Donald Trump even lobbied Sir Keir to ‘drill, baby, drill’ during his state visit, telling the PM: ‘You have a great asset hereBut with uncertainty over whether major developments such as the Jackdaw and Rosebank fields will be approved, investment has been in question.Mr Miliband’s allies have argued in the past that there remains plenty of licenced oil and gas reserves in the North Sea.They have said that a ban on future development should make little real difference, given the basin’s declining status.Oil and gas executives argue that Labour’s policies have accelerated the decline, killing off investment prematurely.
