Reform leader Nigel Farage demanded tax cuts for North Sea oil and gas firms during a whistlestop visit to Aberdeen yesterday.
A long-standing critic of Net Zero, Mr Farage said the 'disastrous' 78% tax rate, brought in by the Tories and increased by Labour, was putting off firms from applying to drill at a time when fossil fuels are needed.
Addressing a press conference at The Silver Darling, with protestors audible in the background, Mr Farage said business leaders in the Granite City are “very worried about the future of the oil and gas industry”.
He said the “serious decline” of the UK offshore oil and gas sector largely the result of “wholly unnecessary” decisions from the Conservative and Labour parties.
He said: “2025 will be a year of record consumption of fossil fuels. We can con ourselves as much as we like. There will be more coal burned this year than ever before in the history of human kind. The same applies to oil and gas.
“Even the most ardent proponent of net zero has to accept the world will still be using oil and gas up until 2050 and beyond.
“And yet we’ve decided to sacrifice this industry as a consensus around net zero has emerged.”
He said Scotland was “literally de-industrialising before our very eyes.”
Mr Farage’s comments came as he announced Aberdeen City Councillor Duncan Massey had defected to the party from the Scottish Conservatives.