Burnham says Rosebank and Jackdaw decisions coming shortly

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the government would announce its decisions on the Rosebank oil field and Jackdaw gas field shortly, as it works to repair an approval process invalidated by a court ruling. The government has not yet decided whether to approve either project. At Prime Minister’s Questions on October 14, Burnham told MPs the previous approvals had been struck down by the courts and that the process needed to be fixed. He said he would take a pragmatic approach to oil and gas and that decisions would be set out shortly. Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh is responsible for deciding whether the projects can proceed. The Court of Session in Edinburgh ruled last year that the fields’ earlier approvals were unlawful because the government had not considered the climate impact of burning the oil and gas they would produce. The fields had been approved under the previous government, and the projects subsequently faced legal challenges and public consultation. Rosebank is an oil field northwest of Shetland, while Jackdaw is a gas field east of Aberdeen. Their developers say the projects could contribute to domestic energy supplies and support jobs.