US President Donald Trump has praised Prime Minister Andy Burnham for the UK government's decision to approve production from the North Sea's Jackdaw gas field. He said he had spoken with Burnham, telling reporters on Friday that the decision would "make the UK a very rich country". Trump said: "The other prime minister, the previous man, Starmer.
He's a very nice man, but he never got it done, and this one is getting it." The decision had been subject to intense debate around its environment and economic impact and came after years of legal challenges. Burnham announced the decision to approve the drilling of the Jackdaw gas field earlier this week. Jackdaw is situated 150 miles (241km) east of Aberdeen and is operated by Adura, a joint venture between Shell and Norwegian state energy firm Equinor.
Ministers said the first gas could be produced by the end of this month, helping heat millions of homes, and also announced the creation of a new energy wealth fund. Environmental campaigners say the decision would hamper efforts to tackle climate change and make "no meaningful difference" to UK energy security. Based on official forecasts for the amount of gas the UK will need over the next decade, that suggests Jackdaw has the potential to meet around 1.6% of total projected national gas demand between 2026 and 2036.
Operators say it could be connected to the Great British gas network within weeks and could produce gas for the next 11 years. Trump responded to the decision on Friday, but appeared to confuse oil and gas. He said: "They're opening up the North Sea oil.
I've been after them to do that for two years." Trump added: "Andy is getting it done, and I guess it's against the liberal principle, but he knows what's right. It's going to make UK a very wealthy country." Earlier this week, on Wednesday, Trump said the decision was "great news for the wealth and prosperity" of the UK. Writing on his Truth Social platform, Trump urged the UK to go "full blast" and called the North Sea "one of the greatest and most prosperous areas of oil in the world".
A decision is yet to be taken on whether production can begin at Rosebank, the UK's largest known untapped oil field, which is located off the coast of Shetland in the North Atlantic. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused the prime minister of "dithering" on Jackdaw and said a ban on new oil and gas licences should be repealed. However, Burnham said her party had "messed up" the original decision by not giving any regard to climate obligations - things he said "have to be considered in the round".
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