Labour activist and Deltic Energy boss Mark Lappin has warned Ed Miliband's North Sea hostility risks a repeat of the devastating impact Margaret Thatcher's policies had on working-class Britain.
Lappin, who is the treasurer of his local party in Aberdeenshire and a Labour election agent, The Times reports, was clear that he supports net zero, but that creating obstacles to domestic production made no sense while it results in increased reliance on foreign imports.
The life-long Labour member now fears the economic damage inflicted on his native Teeside in the 80s could be repeated.
He said: “Demand is going down more slowly than [North Sea] production is falling, according to government figures, and that is creating a gap which is being filled with imports.
“That’s bad for jobs, bad for treasury receipts, energy security and emissions. I saw what happened to Teesside when policy killed steel, petrochemicals and coal, and I’m nervous we’re seeing it again.
“We have policy actively driving away production and investment and all that happens is we are more dependent on imports.”
He added: “At least Thatcher meant to kill those industries. They are doing it without meaning to, it’s almost worse. They say they don’t want to damage the industry or investment, but here’s a bunch of policies that are harmful.”
Read the full story in The Times.