SNP embraces oil and gas to fend off Labour in Scotland – POLITICO

One industry figure — granted anonymity to speak candidly — said that backing new licenses could hand the SNP an issue with which to battle Labour on the doorstep in the weeks ahead.

While the “loss of 100,000 jobs sounds big and scary, it sounds even more scary when it’s 20 [people] in the local factory yard where people work,” the industry figure argued. “SNP and the unions have been successful in bringing this fight to the doorstep, and this is precisely the place they [Labour] don’t want to have this argument.”

Louise Gilmour, Scotland secretary at the GMB union which represents fossil fuel workers, said that her members “are on the frontline of the transition to renewables and of this election campaign,” and that parties must balance “reassurance and economic stability in the North Sea while building an industrial strategy capable of harnessing their skills and experience to bolster the drive to renewables.”

Meanwhile, oil and gas lobby group Brindex said that the “SNP has recognized the severe political consequences of taking a position against the further development of oil and gas under U.K. waters” and that “a U-turn from the SNP should concern the Labour party.”

The SNP’s biggest rivals, unsurprisingly, are unimpressed. “It is usually best if you’re going into an election to finish the revision of your policy before the election, as opposed to continue to revise it during the election,” said Alex Salmond, once the SNP leader and Scottish first minster, and now head of the breakaway Alba Party.

Additional reporting by Andrew McDonald