Labour told they MUST suspend 'campaign against Britain's North Sea oil and gas'

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Work at Rosebank and Jackdaw has been halted after a legal challenge on climate grounds

The Government must end a "campaign against Britain's North Sea oil and gas" and approve drilling at two controversial fields, the shadow energy secretary said.

Work at Rosebank, Britain's largest untapped oilfield, and Jackdaw, a gas field, has been halted after a legal challenge on climate grounds.

A parliamentary debate on the fields heard that 1,000 jobs a month were being lost in the North Sea sector.

These workers "deserved clarity" and a swift decision, the Commons was told.

Following a public consultation last month, the decision as to whether work can restart at either field now lies with the Government.

Supporters say approval would boost Britain's economy and energy security, but climate campaigners argue the environmental cost is too high.

Ed Miliband, the former energy secretary, once described Rosebank as "climate vandalism".

Andrew Bowie, promoted to shadow energy secretary in this week's Conservative reshuffle, demanded to know whether work would resume.

He said: "The public consultation on Rosebank and Jackdaw has now closed, so the Department can no longer hide behind process, delay or consultation exercises.

"It has dithered, prevaricated and delayed for far too long.

"I have a simple question for the Minister: will the Government finally approve Rosebank and Jackdaw—something we already did in government—or will they continue the previous Secretary of State’s campaign against Britain’s North sea oil and gas industry?"

Climate minister Katie White said it was important to allow the "robust process to take its course".

"We will be following that due process," she said. "The process ended in August, and the Secretary of State will be taking the decisions in due course."

Also at the debate was Douglas Lumsden, who won a by-election in Aberdeen South in June after campaigning heavily on the North Sea.

The victory was the first Westminster by-election gain in Scotland for the Tories in almost 60 years.

Mr Lumsden said: "Every month, 1,000 jobs are being lost in the UK oil and gas industry.

"Every month, the Government dither and delay, which means more jobs lost.

"Does the minister not accept that those workers deserve clarity, and not to have the decision kicked further down the road? They need assurance that their jobs will be saved."

Ms White agreed jobs were key, saying the government had expanded training and support around the North Sea.

But she said the decision-making was going through a "quasi-judicial process".

"Regretfully, we cannot say a huge amount about the process today, because we want that process to be respected," she said.

Opposing drilling was Labour MP Caterhine Fookes, who said it would "absolutely blow our carbon emissions targets out of the water".

She said the summer drought and wildfires demonstrated that "we need to go hard on the green transition".